Entertainment

John Woo, center, with Christian Slater and John Travolta, is a New Wave Hong Kong filmmaker.

I never thought I would recommend a restaurant based on its salad bar, but that's what I like best about The Hydra in Sandpoint.

Sergei Bodrov Jr. plays Vania, a Russian army recruit captured by a Chechen villager.

Anson Funderburgh, right, and Sam Myers are at the Waterin' Hole.

Poet James McAuley will read from his collected works at 7:30 tonight at the Lorinda Knight Gallery, 523 W. Sprague. McAuley, who teaches creative writing at Eastern Washington University, once reviewed art shows in his native Ireland. The reading is free and open to the public.

(Scene from film)

How much St. Patrick's Day spirit does Spokane have? Apparently, a lot more than its sister city Limerick, Ireland. Limerick doesn't even recognize the feast day with a parade.

The last of the winter winds are blowing away the snow and now it's time to think spring fun. The months ahead offer an eclectic mix of entertainment and fun things to do. To help readers plan their social schedules so they don't miss a beat, we'll publish a day-by-day entertainment guide for spring. To get your event into the guide, send us the name of the event, the date, time, ticket information and a phone number where we can get additional information. The guide will be published March 28 in the Friday Weekend section. Submit information by March 21 to: Weekend Guide, Features Department, The Spokesman-Review, 999 W. Riverside, Spokane, WA 99210; fax it to (509) 459-5098; or e-mail it to susane@spokesman.com

(Scene from film)

(Photo of movie clip from "Hamlet")

November's ice storm brought down trees and power lines, and it also brought down attendance at Spokane Symphony concerts. The symphony lost more than $50,000 in ticket sales in November and December. Pianist Andre Watts, one of the superstars of classical music, will perform with the symphony tonight in a benefit concert the orchestra hopes will make up some of post-ice storm loss. Watts will play Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1 and the orchestra will perform Beethoven's Overture to "Egmont" and "Leonore" Overture No. 3.

Meg Ryan portrays a Medevac pilot in "Courage Under Fire."

The last of the winter winds are blowing away the snow and now it's time to think spring fun. The months ahead offer an eclectic mix of entertainment and fun things to do. To help readers plan their social schedules so they don't miss a beat, we'll publish a day-by-day entertainment guide for spring. To get your event into the guide, send us the name of the event, the date, time, ticket information and a phone number where we can get additional information. The guide will be published March 28 in the Friday Weekend section.

Wiser Sin hopes to pull in fans to The Met on Saturday.

The Paladins play the Fort Spokane Brewery on Thursday.

'Have you done the Mongo yet?" asked a friend who works in Coeur d'Alene. Say what? The "Mongo" is the sparkling new Mongolian BBQ in the Ironwood Shopping Center and my pal urged me to give it a try. But he added this qualifier: "It's kind of a guy thing."

Billy Bob Thornton and Lucas Black turn in poignant performances in "Sling Blade," which focuses on the friendship of the two characters.

Howard Stern plays himself as a young DJ in Detroit during the 1970s.

One of the great things about Europe is that it is simply moldy with tradition. It's just wonderful that some things never change. There are really, really old buildings and institutions that go back to the Middle Ages. There is even a choir that has been singing in Austria continuously for five centuries. Not non-stop - you know what I mean. It's the Vienna Boys Choir. The magic of the boys choir tradition is the comparatively small span of time between musical literacy and puberty. Unlike Peter Pan, these boys grow up and their voices change. There is no chance for a career as a boy soprano. Each season they are replaced by a new batch who need to study and work to keep the tradition alive. We benefit from their ephemeral toil in the form of the sweetest, purest sound on earth. The Vienna Boys Choir made their first trip to the United States in 1932 and have returned many times since for hundreds of concerts all over the country. This year their tour includes Pullman for a concert on Sunday. They will be performing the traditional mix of classics and folk songs for which they are known, and which has made them a success for, well, 500 years.