Arts in brief
David Hyde Pierce to return to N.Y. stage
NEW YORK -- David Hyde Pierce will return to the New York stage in December as an obsessive book editor.
The former "Frasier" star will headline "Close Up Space," a play by Molly Smith Metzler at the New York City Center. It's about an editor estranged from his daughter until she walks back into his life.
Woody Allen to return to Broadway this fall
NEW YORK -- Three one-act plays by Woody Allen, Ethan Coen and Elaine May are being bundled together for Broadway this fall.
Allen is no stranger to the format, having collaborated with May and David Mamet for "Death Defying Acts," three one-act comedies that debuted in 1995.
The new mini plays, titled "Relatively Speaking," will be directed by John Turturro, who has appeared in films by Coen and his brother, Joel, including "The Big Lebowski."
Producers said previews will begin in September with an opening the following month.
The Who's Townshend writing memoir for 2012
NEW YORK -- Pete Townshend has more to say about his generation. The Who's guitarist and songwriter, known for such classics as "My Generation," and the "Tommy" rock opera, is writing his autobiography. HarperCollins said the book, currently untitled, would come out in fall 2012.
Townshend, 66, has long been one of rock's most introspective and self-consciously literary artists. He said the book was "not a vanity for me," but an "essential rite of passage."
Retired Justice Stevens has deal for memoir
NEW YORK -- Retired Su-preme Court Justice John Paul Stevens is writing a memoir. The 91-year-old Stevens has a deal with Little, Brown and Company for "Five Chiefs," about the five chief justices he knew during his long career.
The book, written by Stevens alone, will come out the first Monday in October, with the court's new term.
Tellus Museum showing Smithsonian photos
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- Tellus Science Museum in North Georgia features a collection of aircraft and spacecraft from the National Air and Space Museum in D.C.
"At the Controls" includes 7-foot-tall images of the cockpits of everything from a 1903 Wright Flyer to NASA space shuttle Columbia. The images from Smithsonian photographers Eric Long and Mark Avino let visitors see the planes and shuttles from the pilot's view. The exhibit runs through Nov. 13.
See www.tellusmuseum.org.
'Voice' contestants need right moment
Mark Burnett is responsible for the new hit "The Voice." He admits that some of the contestants are pros.
"There are people who actually have been on a label. There are people who have toured before, people who have been on other competition shows before. You know, we want to be an equal opportunity and not discriminate the fact that someone tried before. And many people have tried ... and just didn't hit that right moment, so we decided let's just give people a chance. ... There's a big line between very good and great. And on this show there are great."
Walker from trailblazer to 'The Protector' on TV
On June 12, Ally Walker ("Sons of Anarchy" "Profiler") lands on Lifetime as a harried mother of two who's a homicide detective on the new show "The Protector." Walker was a bit of a trailblazer on "Profiler."
"There were no female-driven dark shows, and it wasn't supposed to be this psychic drama. She was supposed to be this intuitive person. The thing that interests me is the human experience ... like those little voids in between what people say and they don't say and how they feel."
