Even the most passionate Shakespeare aficionados will admit that among the Bard’s three-dozen-plus comedies, tragedies and history plays, there are some parts that can drag on a bit.

Author, actress, singer and public speaker Julie Caitlin Brown has one message: “Love First.”

“Seraphim Falls” — The film comes from Mel Gibson’s company, Icon Productions, but it’s so creatively and consistently violent you’d think Gibson himself directed it, too.

LOS ANGELES — R&B singer Brandy was involved in a four-car freeway crash last month that left a 38-year-old woman dead, authorities said Wednesday.

PARK CITY, Utah — At a festival that features several films with sexual content, including full male nudity and a documentary about bestiality, a Southern Gothic tale that includes the rape of a young girl is causing the biggest stir.

LOS ANGELES — A federal judge on Wednesday refused to hear a lawsuit brought by the father of Ronald Goldman over the money paid to O.J. Simpson for his unpublished book, “If I Did It.”

• WHERE IS Wii? Who would have thought, given all the publicity surrounding the PlayStation 3’s arrival last fall, that the Nintendo Wii would be the must-have console of the new year?

TOKYO — Square and loud, SpongeBob wasn’t supposed to have much chance for success in Japan, a nation famous for its love of more cuddly characters like Hello Kitty and Pikachu.

Writer Susannah Grant, directing for the first time with “Catch and Release,” seems to be aiming for the same kind of meaty chick flick she’s come up with before in “28 Days,” “Erin Brockovich” and “In Her Shoes.”

It’s rare that a video game comes along that’s so original that it doesn’t fit into any pre-existing categories. Take Nintendo’s “Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day.” Is it an educational game? A puzzle game? Or (heaven help us) “edutainment”?

When an aspiring young musician of 17 has a chance to get sage advice from one of the great professionals of our day, it often has lasting influence.

San Francisco Chronicle film critic Mick LaSalle returns for his fourth annual Napa Valley Arts & Lectures appearance on Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. at Copia.

Students from Napa County will compete in the second competition round of Idol NV at the Napa Valley Opera House Saturday.

More than a concert, “In the Mood” takes a look at the life and time of America’s greatest generation with music and dance that combines up-tempo Big Band rhythms with intimate ballads. The String of Pearls Big Band orchestra and cast of 24 singers and dancers bring back the music that moved a nation’s spirit more that 60 years ago,

One of the Bay Area’s favorite entertainers, Val Diamond, returns to the Napa Valley on Monday night to serenade fans gathered at Copia.

LONDON — Coca-Cola Co. has reached an agreement with an unsigned London ska band over the global soft drink giant’s use of the band’s material in TV ads.

Napa Valley College presents “Faculty and Friends” a vocal recital Sunday at 3 p.m. in the NVC Theater

The 14th annual Napa Valley Mustard Festival kicks off this weekend with the traditional food, wine and arts gala, Mustard Magic, at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena.

Familiar melodies, virtuoso saxophone playing and a dash of the contemporary highlighted Sunday afternoon’s concert by the Napa Valley Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Asher Raboy.

Celebrating the release of a new compact disc and their first local performance of the decade, California Zephyr will bring its rich, folk-inspired harmonies and songs to Copia next week as part of the Community Spotlight Concert series.

Editor’s note: Colin McCuen, a senior at Napa High School, provided this piece on a visit by Wynton Marsalis to Napa last fall. Through a computer glitch, it got lost on its way to the Register, but it has finally arrived and we wanted to include it today with our coverage of his brother’s visit.