Michael Alig and Krider Performing Arts Center: Difference between pages
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'''Krider Performing Arts Center''' (KPAC) is an auditorium in [[Paris, Tennessee|Paris]], [[Tennessee]], U.S.A. |
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{{Infobox Criminal |
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The building is attached to the Paris Elementary School, which frequently makes use of the auditorium. KPAC consists of a full stage with curtains, backstage/props room, green room, piano room, sound booth, catswalk, lobby with a ticket counter, and a large auditorium that can seat roughly 500-600 people. |
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| subject_name = Michael Alig |
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| image_name = Michael_Alig.jpg |
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| image_size = 180px |
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| image_caption = |
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| date_of_birth = {{birth date and age|1966|04|29}} |
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| place_of_birth = [[South Bend, Indiana]] |
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| date_of_death = |
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| place_of_death = |
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| Prisoner number= |
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| charge = Murder of [[Angel Melendez]] |
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| conviction = Manslaughter 1st degree (Cat B) October 24th 1997 |
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| penalty = Pleaded guilty to manslaughter, and was sentenced to ten to twenty years in prison<ref name="nymag_Nov_2006">{{cite web |date=November 20, 2006|url = http://nymag.com/news/people/24365/|title = Party Boy in a Cage|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York Magazine]]| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last=Jonathan Van Meter |quote=}}</ref> |
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| status = In jail at the [[Coxsackie Correctional Facility]] DIN 97A6595 |
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| occupation = 90s [[New York]] Party Promoter |
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| spouse = |
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| parents = Elke Alig |
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| children = |
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}} |
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[[Image:Clubkidsjames.jpg|thumb|[[James St. James]] and Michael Alig]] |
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'''Michael Alig''' (born [[South Bend, Indiana]], [[April 29]] [[1966]]) was the founding member of the notorious [[Club Kids]], a group of young clubgoers led by Alig in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1996 Alig was convicted of the murder of [[Andre Melendez|Andre "Angel" Melendez]]<ref name="nytimes_Andre">{{cite web |date=September 11, 1997|url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE3DB1239F932A2575AC0A961958260&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss|title = 2 Men Plead Guilty in Killing of Club Denizen|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York Times]]| accessdate = 2008-03-23 | last=JOHN SULLIVAN |quote=Mr. Alig, who pleaded guilty in State Supreme Court in Manhattan to one count of first degree manslaughter, admitted that he and a friend smothered Andre Melendez, known as Angel, chopped up his body and threw it into the Hudson River.}}</ref> in a confrontation over a drug debt.<ref name="nymag_Nov_2006"/> |
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<gallery> |
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==Underground club scene== |
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Image:KPAC LOBBY.jpeg|View of the KPAC lobby. To the far left is a portrait of [[Tony Award]] winner [[Cherry Jones]] of Paris, TN |
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Image:524_front_view_1.jpg|The KPAC stage |
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</gallery> |
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== Uses == |
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Alig came to New York and started out at as a busboy at Danceteria in 1983. A natural at throwing parties with little or no resources he soon began to rise in New York's party scene.<ref name="nymag_Nov_2006"/> Alig was mentored by socialite [[James St. James]] and club owner [[Peter Gatien]] while rising in popularity and prominence in the national underground club scene. Alig was also influential in the early promotion of his then boyfriend [[DJ Keoki]]<ref name="villagevoice_Musto">{{cite web |date=March 26th, 2002 12:00 AM|url = http://www.villagevoice.com/nyclife/0213,musto,33375,15.html|title = NYC Life|format = HTML |publisher = villagevoice| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last=Michael Musto |quote=Alig and his then boyfriend, Keoki,}}</ref> who studied under DJ Brian Telfair, top DJ at the time in Alig's and Gatien's clubs, most notably the New York club [[The Limelight]], owned by Gatien and designed by [[Ari Bahat]].<ref name="nytimes_Bahat">{{cite web |date=August 25, 1989|url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE0DD1038F936A1575BC0A96F948260|title = Ari Bahat, Architect, 48|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York Times]]| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last= |quote=}}</ref> In Sept 1995 the Limelight was closed by the police on suspicion of drug trafficking<ref name="Documentary ">Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato; (1998) Format:Documentary ''[[Party Monster: The Shockumentary]]''<BR>{{imdb title|id=0141716|title=Party Monster (1998)}}</ref>, but subsequently reopened several times during the 1990s.<ref name="New York Times Limelight">{{cite web |date=November 22, 1998|url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=980DE7DF1330F931A15752C1A96E958260|title = A Fallen Club King Tries a Comeback|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York Times]]| accessdate = 2008-05-22 | last=ANDREW JACOBS |quote=The born-again Limelight, he predicts, will usher in a new era of clubbing ...Although the club has operated sporadically since last summer, it is still a work in progress. Mr. Gatien says he has spent $1 million so far renovating the church interior -- a ''reinvention,'' as he calls it -- but much remains to be done. }}</ref> In September 2003, it reopened under the name "Avalon." |
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Aside from the frequent use by the elementary school, the city also uses KPAC for strings and band concerts. It hosts both profit and non-profit groups throughout the year. Because the auditorium has the sound booth and stage, musical and promotional groups also book appearances. |
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The Krider Center is used yearly for theatrical purposes, too. |
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===Alig's Party Kids=== |
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Alig's other protegés included [[Gitsie]], [[Jennytalia]], Robert "Freez" Riggs, [[Richie Rich (designer)|Richie Rich]], [[RuPaul]], [[Amanda Lepore]], and many other Club Kid personalities. The Club Kids' outrageousness resulted in their appearing on the news and the television talk show circuit--they appeared on the [[Geraldo Rivera]] show five times. |
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''"The Krider Center is available throughout the year for musical, dance, and theatrical performances, as well as conferences, seminars and church meetings."'' |
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==Murder of Angel Melendez== |
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-quoted from KPAC's website |
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[[Angel Melendez|"Angel" Melendez]] worked at the Limelight, and after the bar's closure by federal agents, Angel was fired. With no job he moved into Alig's apartment.<ref name="Documentary "/> Increasingly affected by [[substance abuse]], Alig and his friend [[Robert "Freeze" Riggs]] murdered Angel after an argument over many things including a long-standing drug debt.<ref name="thesmokinggun">{{cite web |date=2007 |url = http://www.thesmokinggun.com/longhand/riggs1.html|title = Robert "Freez" Riggs written confession|format = HTML |publisher = [[The Smoking Gun]]| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last= |quote=}}</ref> Alig has stated many times that he was so high on drugs that the events are quite cloudy. On [[Dec 09]], [[1996]] Robert "Freeze" Riggs confessed to police that on March 17, 1996<ref name="Documentary "/>: |
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== Programs == |
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{{Cquote2|On a Sunday in March of 1996 I was at home ... and Michael Alig and Angel Melendez were loudly arguing ... and getting louder. I opened the room and started towards the other bedroom ... at which point Michael Alig was yelling, "Help me!" "Get him off of me" [Angel] started shaking him violently and banging him against the wall. He was yelling "You better get my money or I'll break your neck" ... I grabbed the hammer ... and hit Angel over the head... |Robert "Freeze" Riggs <ref name="thesmokinggun"/>}} |
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KPAC holds auditions for a program called ''Krider Idol'',<ref>[http://www.nwtntoday.com/news.php?viewStory=16300 Krider Idol contest to be held in Paris. NWTN Today. Tuesday, September 9, 2008]</ref> a semi-mock of the popular TV show ''[[American Idol]]''. They also have a summer theater workshop called Children's Theater and a winter one called Winter Workshop, founded winter 2007, in which instructors both direct and teach the students in three plays based for three differnt age groups: 5-8, 9-12, 13-18 years old. |
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== History == |
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Then according to Freeze he hit Melendez a total of three times on the head. Then Alig grabbed a pillow and tried to smother him.<ref name="thesmokinggun"/> When Melendez was unconscious Freeze went to the other room and when he came back he noticed a broken syringe on the floor and Alig pouring something chemical down Melendez's throat.<ref name="thesmokinggun"/> After a few days, the body began to smell. Alig injected himself with [[heroin]], cut the legs off the corpse, and stuffed him in a box and afterward threw the corpse into the Hudson River.<ref name="thesmokinggun"/> |
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KPAC's name is taken from a [[Paris, Tennessee]] couple, Clem and Ruby Krider. For more than 60 years, they played a major role in the art community of [[Henry County]]. Ruby taught public speaking and drama to many generations of Parisians, a few being Tony winner [[Cherry Jones]], [[Pulitizer Prize]] winner John Wilford, [["Cheers"]] star Shelley Long, [[Vanderbilt]] law professor Robert Covington, and [[Ford Motor Company]] Controller Frank Mason. |
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In the summer of 2003, KPAC was minorly hit by a tornado passing through the Henry County area. It was quickly repaired. |
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==Investigation of the disappearance== |
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Michael Alig went around telling people he was in fact the killer, but there was so much drug use being done that no one believed it; even if they did, nobody wanted to be the one to turn him in. Soon the claims, along with the "disappearance" of Meléndez just became rumors. While Alig was in rehab, those rumors were reported on in the ''[[Village Voice]]'' by [[Michael Musto]]. Although no names were used, it stated the details of the murder. Over the coming weeks, the ''[[Village Voice]]'' continued to report and make accusations about the murder of "Angel" Melendez; however the police department was not that concerned about the disappearance of a Colombian drug dealer.<ref name="metroactive">{{cite web |date=August 16, 1999|url = http://www.metroactive.com/papers/sfmetro/08.16.99/discobloodbath-9931.html|title = Clubland Horrorcoaster|format = HTML |publisher = metroactive| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last=Michelle Goldberg |quote=One of the most poignant scenes in this story occurs when Angel's brother appears on the scene and is baffled by the callousness and indifference both of the police and of the scenesters Angel considered friends.}}</ref> |
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Through September the police had still not questioned Alig about the murder; they were focused on his business partner Peter Gatien{{Fact|date=March 2008}}, wanting Alig to testify against him.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} Since several months had passed many people believed Alig would get away with it, until a dismembered torso was pulled from the Hudson River at [[Staten Island]].<ref name="nydailynews_Staten">{{cite web |date=Thursday, September 11th 1997, 2:03AM|url = http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/1997/09/11/1997-09-11_nightclub_pals_own_up_to__96.html|title = NIGHTCLUB PALS OWN UP TO '96 KILLING|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York Daily News]]| accessdate = 2008-03-23 | last=BARBARA ROSS |quote=They left the body in a bathtub for a week, then cut the legs off and dumped the pieces into the Hudson River. The torso washed up on Staten Island.}}</ref> James St James recounts how Angel's brother was baffled by the callousness and indifference both of the police and of the scenesters Angel had considered friends.<ref name="metroactive"/> |
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In the fall of 1996, to escape the scrutiny of the media, Michael fled New York. He and some of his close friends took a road trip to Denver, Colorado, stopping in Chicago and his hometown, South Bend. While in South Bend he saw his mother for the first time in three years.<ref name="Documentary "/> Once in Denver he missed New York too much and moved back into the city, trying to make a comeback with his new club night, ''Honey Trap''.<ref name="Documentary "/> |
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In November 1996, the coroner reported the body had been identified as that of known drug dealer "Angel" Meléndez.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} Every rumor was confirmed by the appearance of Angel's body, and the police could not ignore it. Alig fled NY, staying in a hotel in New Jersey with his new boyfriend, Brian McCauly, before the police surrounded the location.<ref name="Documentary "/> Alig went quietly and gave a full confession, but pleaded not guilty to the charge of [[first degree murder]] because he felt he was attacked and only fought back in self-defense.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} However, his lawyers felt because of his strong drug use and the dismemberment of the body he would be found guilty.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} In December 1997, Alig and his accomplice Robert Riggs pleaded guilty to manslaughter and were sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison for Meléndez's death. |
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While in prison, Michael Alig told Michael Musto, who had first reported that Alig had committed the 1996 murder of drug dealer Angel Meléndez: |
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{{Cquote2|I know why I blabbed. I must have wanted to stop me. I was spinning out of control. It's like the old saying 'What do you have to do to get attention around here - kill somebody?'|Michael Alig <ref name="nypost_gossip">{{cite web |date=December 25, 2006|url = http://www.nypost.com/seven/12252006/gossip/pagesix/celeb_antics_a_musto_read_pagesix_.htm|title = CELEB ANTICS A MUSTO READ|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York Post]]| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last= |quote='Club Kid' Michael Alig told Musto, who first reported that Alig had committed the 1996 murder of drug dealer Angel Melendez, "I know why I blabbed. I must have wanted to stop me. I was spinning out of control. It's like the old saying 'What do you have to do to get attention around here - kill somebody?'}}</ref>}} |
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==Prison== |
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While incarcerated, Alig is prisoner #97A-6595<ref name="phone_call_from_a_felon">{{cite web |date=August 5, 2004|url = http://worldofwonder.net/archives/2004/aug/05/phone_call_from_a_felon_or_fabulous_but_true_tales_from_inside_the_big_house.wow|title = Phone Call from a Felon, or Fabulous but True Tales from Inside the Big House|format = HTML |publisher = pub| accessdate = 2008-03-22 | last=Michael Alig and James St. James|quote=}}</ref> <ref name="nymag_Nov_2006"/>. While in the New York prison system, Alig has been moved around from prison to prison, including time in the mental ward at [[Rikers Island]].<ref name="WOW_phone11">{{cite web |date=October 21, 2004|url = http://worldofwonder.net/archives/2004/Oct/21/phone_call_from_a_felon.wow|title = Phone Call from a Felon - Part 11|format = HTML |publisher = WOW| accessdate = 2008-03-23 | last=Michael Alig and [[James St James]] |quote=You know, James, you don’t know any of this: When I first got to Rikers Island, do you know that they put me in the mental ward?}}</ref> |
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===Parole=== |
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Alig became eligible for [[parole]] in 2006. His first parole request, in October 2006, was denied after the parole officer watched the movie ''[[Party Monster (2003 film)|Party Monster]]'', starring [[Macaulay Culkin]]<ref name="nymag_Nov_2006"/>. He was again denied parole in July 2008, and will not be eligible again until his conditional release date in March 2010.<ref name="nysdocslookup">{{cite web |date=2008-05-22|url = http://nysdocslookup.docs.state.ny.us/GCA00P00/WIQ3/WINQ130|title = Inmate Information - Michael Alig|format = HTML |publisher = [[New York City]]| accessdate = 2008-05-22 | last= |quote= Parole Hearing Date:07/2008 }}</ref> He is currently at work on an [[autobiography]] entitled ''Alig-ula''.<ref name="nymag_Nov_2006"/> |
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==Michael Alig in popular media== |
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The events of Michael Alig's years as a [[club promoter]] up to his arrest were portrayed in: |
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*1998 documentary ''[[Party Monster: The Shockumentary]]'' |
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*recreated in a film simply called ''[[Party Monster (2003 film)| Party Monster]]'' starring [[Macaulay Culkin]] as Alig and [[Seth Green]] as St. James. |
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*The events are also covered in St. James' memoir, ''[[Disco Bloodbath]]''.<ref name="book">{{cite book | last = James St. James| authorlink = James St. James| title = Disco Bloodbath: A Fabulous But True Tale of Murder in Clubland|edition= August 11, 1999|pages= 2222 | publisher = Simon & Schuster| isbn= 0684857642}}</ref> |
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*Disco BloodBath was re-released with the Title "<i>Party Monster</i>", after the release of the Movie |
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===Prison CD=== |
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In June 2001, David M. Lambert of the British artists collective, ''the satori group'', visited Alig at Clinton Correctional Facility in [[New York]]. He made recordings that were used in the creation of ''a terrible beauty featuring Michael Alig'', a nine track music CD using samples from the documentary ''Party Monster'', original lyrics and Alig's vocals, among other content.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist|2}} |
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== References == |
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{{Reflist}} |
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*[http://archives.thepilot.com/PilotEditorials/November1999/112299FineArts.html LARRY McGEHEE: Fine Art of Learning to Appreciate the Fine Arts. The Pilot, November 22, 1999] |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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*[http://www.kridercenter.com Krider Performing Arts Center] |
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*{{cite book | last = James St. James| authorlink = James St. James| title = Disco Bloodbath: A Fabulous But True Tale of Murder in Clubland|edition= August 11, 1999|pages= 2222 | publisher = Simon & Schuster| isbn= 0684857642}} |
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* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmLSmwGZ0dU Video Footage of Alig on] [[Joan Rivers]] |
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* '''New York Magazine''' article [http://nymag.com/news/people/24365/ ''Party Boy in a Cage''] by Johnathan Van Meter |
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* '''Papermag''' article [http://www.papermag.com/?section=article&parid=417 ''Prison Life Boredom Behind Bars''] by Michael Alig |
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*{{imdb title|id=0141716|title=Party Monster (1998)}} |
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*{{imdb title|id=0320244|title=Party Monster (2003)}} |
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* [http://worldofwonder.net/archives/2004/aug/05/phone_call_from_a_felon_or_fabulous_but_true_tales_from_inside_the_big_house.wow Prison Phone call transcripts between Alig] and [[James St. James]] - Part1 |
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*[http://worldofwonder.net/archives/2004/Sep/16/phone_call_from_a_felon_lockdown.wow Prison Phone call transcripts between Alig] and [[James St. James]] - Part7 |
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*[http://worldofwonder.net/archives/2004/Oct/21/phone_call_from_a_felon.wow Prison Phone call transcripts between Alig] and [[James St. James]] - Part11 |
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*[http://worldofwonder.net/archives/2004/Oct/28/phone_call_from_a_felon.wow Prison Phone call transcripts between Alig] and [[James St. James]] - Part12 |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Alig, Michael}} |
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[[Category:1966 births]] |
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[[Category:Living people]] |
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[[Category:Americans convicted of murder]] |
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[[Category:People from South Bend, Indiana]] |
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[[Category:LGBT people from the United States]] |
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[[Category:Club Kids]] |
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[[Category:New York City nightlife]] |
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[[Category:American prisoners and detainees]] |
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[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of New York]] |
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[[Category:Buildings and structures in Tennessee]] |
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[[de:Michael Alig]] |
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[[Category:Henry County, Tennessee]] |
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[[pl:Michael Alig]] |
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[[ru:Элиг, Майкл]] |
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Revision as of 14:32, 12 October 2008
Krider Performing Arts Center (KPAC) is an auditorium in Paris, Tennessee, U.S.A. The building is attached to the Paris Elementary School, which frequently makes use of the auditorium. KPAC consists of a full stage with curtains, backstage/props room, green room, piano room, sound booth, catswalk, lobby with a ticket counter, and a large auditorium that can seat roughly 500-600 people.
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View of the KPAC lobby. To the far left is a portrait of Tony Award winner Cherry Jones of Paris, TNView of the KPAC lobby. To the far left is a portrait of Tony Award winner Cherry Jones of Paris, TN
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The KPAC stage
Uses
Aside from the frequent use by the elementary school, the city also uses KPAC for strings and band concerts. It hosts both profit and non-profit groups throughout the year. Because the auditorium has the sound booth and stage, musical and promotional groups also book appearances.
The Krider Center is used yearly for theatrical purposes, too.
"The Krider Center is available throughout the year for musical, dance, and theatrical performances, as well as conferences, seminars and church meetings." -quoted from KPAC's website
Programs
KPAC holds auditions for a program called Krider Idol,[1] a semi-mock of the popular TV show American Idol. They also have a summer theater workshop called Children's Theater and a winter one called Winter Workshop, founded winter 2007, in which instructors both direct and teach the students in three plays based for three differnt age groups: 5-8, 9-12, 13-18 years old.
History
KPAC's name is taken from a Paris, Tennessee couple, Clem and Ruby Krider. For more than 60 years, they played a major role in the art community of Henry County. Ruby taught public speaking and drama to many generations of Parisians, a few being Tony winner Cherry Jones, Pulitizer Prize winner John Wilford, "Cheers" star Shelley Long, Vanderbilt law professor Robert Covington, and Ford Motor Company Controller Frank Mason. In the summer of 2003, KPAC was minorly hit by a tornado passing through the Henry County area. It was quickly repaired.