Anthony Tommasini reviews New York City Opera's season-opening production of Strauss opera Capriccio; fall schedule; photos (M)

What Lies Beyond Poetry and Music

Robert Redford, left, Jennifer Lopez and Morgan Freeman come together on a Wyoming ranch in ''An Unfinished Life,'' a contemporary western directed by Lasse Hallstrom. There is also a grizzly bear, liberated from a makeshift zoo, and a 12-year-old who meets her grandfather for the first time.       A film review by Stephen Holden, Page 10.

Free the Bear, Please (It's a Symbol)

Gia Kourlas Critic's Notebook column on popularity of reality television dance shows Dancing With the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance; photos (M)

Dance, a Last Resort, Rises on Reality TV

You cannot miss the viewing wall at ground zero. Helpful plaques are easy to find and ghastly souvenirs are hard to avoid. But most visitors leave the edge of that indecipherable void without having heard a knowing voice.     A voice like that of Gerry Bogacz, who escaped with his life from the World Trade Center, or of Lee Ielpi, whose son -- a firefighter -- did not. They are among the volunteer guides who will lead occasional tours around ground zero in coming weeks, practicing for a full-time program that is to begin in November.  

The Human Voice of 9/11

With five-set tests of character the rule at this United States Open, Roger Federer proved once more that he was the exception as he accelerated into the semifinals last night by overwhelming his onetime nemesis David Nalbandian, 6-2, 6-4, 6-1.     Nalbandian, a rugged Argentine with an all-court game, once had Federer's number, beating him at times when they were juniors and beating him five straight times after they turned professional. But Federer unquestionably has the statistical momentum now, and he beat the 11th-seeded Nalbandian for the third time in a row with a minimum of fuss and bother, despite a late night spent in front of the television watching Andre Agassi pass one of the tougher exams of his career against James Blake.  

No Trouble for Federer as He Cruises Into Semifinals

WHEN he woke up yesterday, Aaron Krickstein was no longer the most recent and celebrated loser of a famous fifth-set tie breaker at the United States Open. Fourteen years after Jimmy Connors, Krickstein turned on the television to learn he was off the hook, finished, presumably, with those maddening rain-delay reruns.     ''I couldn't believe Andre did it,'' Krickstein said during our second telephone conversation in the past two weeks. ''I watched the first two sets, and the way Blake was playing, it looked like he was being overwhelmed, an old man against a guy in his prime.''  

14 Years Later, a New Classic for the U.S. Open

Hurricane Katrina has decimated legal system of New Orleans region; more than third of state's lawyers have lost their offices; many computer records will be lost forever; some local courthouses have been flooded, imperiling vast universe of files, records and documents; court proceedings, from divorces to murder trials, will be indefinitely halted; in criminal courts in southern Lousiana, thousands of detainees awaiting hearings and trials are thrust into legal limbo without courts, trials or lawyers (M)

A Legal System in Shambles

Some people living on high ground in New Orleans are defying Mayor C Ray Nagin's orders to leave, contending they have constitutional right to remain in their homes; Nagin says city is not safe for civilians because of risk of fire and water-borne diseases; police officers ae knocking on doors, pleading with holdouts to leave on their own; there is no official word about when they would start to evict residents forcibly; to reduce risk of violent confrontation, police begin confiscating firearms, even those legally owned; photos (M)

Holdouts on Dry Ground Say, 'Why Leave Now?'

The four major Democrats running for mayor spent their last televised debate striking hard at their main message: that Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's housing and education policies had failed to help struggling middle-class and poor New Yorkers and that the Democrats could do better.     But on Channel 7 last night, the four candidates largely shied away from directly confronting one another. With Tuesday's mayoral primary lurking around the corner, party leaders are urging the candidates to avoid the divisiveness of the 2001 party primary. The candidates, meanwhile, also seemed intent on drawing some converts from the other camps.  

Democratic Rivals Play Nice, Saving Sharpest Barbs for Mayor

Pres Bush's key advisers at White House, Justice Dept and Pentagon decided, for reasons of practicality and politics, not to urge him to take command of relief effort last week as New Orleans descended into chaos; instead, they decided to rely on growing number of National Guard personnel flowing into Louisiana, who were under Gov Kathleen Babineaux Blanco's control; as situation grew worse, officials in Washington and Louisiana wrangled with questions of federal/state authority, weighing realities of military logistics and perhaps talking past each other in midst of crisis; decision makers in Washington felt certain Blanco would have resisted surrendering control, as administration officials believe would have been required under Insurrection Act for president to deploy active-duty combat forces before law and order had been re-established; administration was also concerned about message that would have been sent by a president ousting a Southern governor of another party from command of her National Guard; aides to Blanco say she would have accepted deployment of active-duty miiltary officials, but would balk at giving up control of Guard; photo (M)

Political Issues Snarled Plans for Troop Aid

Article on John P Costas, who went from chief executive of UBS AG's global investment banking unit to head of hedge fund within global asset management group in space of 72 hours; says Costas's decision to leave executive suite was quiet, self-imposed and remarkably swift; Costas comments; photo (M)

From UBS's Suite of Power to the Sweat of a Hedge Fund

Food and Drug Administration votes to recommend approval of insulin drug Exubera for adults with either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, despite some concerns about long-term effect that inhaling insulin would have on users' lungs; drug was developed by Pfizer in partnership with Sanofi-Aventis and Nektar Therapeutics (M)

F.D.A. Panel Endorses Inhaled Form of Insulin

Amtrak is preparing to announce a significant increase in fares that will push up the monthly cost of commuting for thousands of train riders in the Northeast by as much as 50 percent, according to railroad industry officials, commuter advocates and Congressional staff members.     Some commuters who travel regularly on Amtrak trains between Washington and Boston said ticket agents had warned them of a pending increase that could add hundreds of dollars to the cost of their monthly passes. By yesterday afternoon, people who work on Capitol Hill said Amtrak employees had told them an announcement about a big rise in fares was imminent, probably coming next week.  

Amtrak Is Said to Be Planning a Big Fare Rise

Survey of some of America's most expensive second-home markets, including Sullivan's Island, SC, which, along with Aspen, Nantucket, Palm Beach and the Hamptons, have been fetching record prices in current real estate boom; top markets have a few things in common: few are bigger than 15 square miles, most are either on water or surrounded by it and all are reasonable drive--or helicopter flight--from major city; chart; drawing; photos (L)

America's Priciest Getaways

JONATHAN SALAZAR turns 4 on Sunday. Naturally, his family will have a party for him. But it will probably be a demure gathering at his parents' apartment in Elmhurst, Queens. That is pretty much the way Jonathan's young life has been celebrated each year.     Someday, says his mother, Jacqueline Guevara, he will understand why his birthday is more subdued than most. Unbridled happiness is not automatic, not now and perhaps not for a long while, when it comes to those who entered the world on Sept. 11, 2001.  

When Happy and Birthday Don't Mix

Makeup of Gulf Coast work force--heavy on warehouse employees and blackjack dealers, light on bankers and factory workers--has already complicated relief efforts and appears likely to add to Hurricane Katrina's economic damage; New Orleans and coastal Mississippi, with population less educated than nation as whole, employed many people without kind of skills that would help them quickly find new jobs; Congressional Budget Office estimates that 400,000 jobs, out of approximately one million in area pummeled by storm, will remain unfilled through end of year; school districts around Louisiana are hiring teachers from New Orleans to teach children from city who are pouring into their schools; Manpower has placed 400 refugees in temporary jobs paying about $8 to $12 an hour; private economists and Congressional Budget Office predict that by early 2006 economy will recover 400,000 lost jobs, as rebuilding of Gulf Coast picks up speed; photos (M)

Willing Workers but With the Wrong Job Skills

Fire Dept's oral histories of 9/11 show that many firefighters who perished in World Trade Center's north tower knew 'absolutely nothing' about reality of gathering crisis; extent of their isolation from critical information in final 29 minutes had officially been secret for three and half years; Mayor Michael R Bloomberg refused to release oral histories until ordered to do so by court last month; he and former Mayor Rudolph W Giuliani both testified before 9/11 commission that many firefighters who died in north tower realized terrible danger of moment but chose to stay in building to rescue civilians; of 343 firefighters who died on 9/11, estimated 200 perished in north tower or at its foot; of 58 firefighters who escaped building and gave oral histories, only four say they knew south tower had already fallen, and only three say they heard radio warnings that north tower was also in danger of collapse; excerpts from oral histories; photo (L)

9/11 Firefighters Told of Isolation Amid Disaster

 Eating, Writing and 'Rithmetic  As schools seek to confront child obesity, perhaps none is taking a bolder approach than the Promise Academy, in Harlem, where food is as important as homework, and where a farmers' market appears monthly.  PAGE B5    Ukraine's Chief Fires Cabinet  President Viktor A. Yushchenko of Ukraine dismissed the prime minister and her cabinet as internal divisions and corruption accusations splintered the political coalition that led the ''Orange Revolution'' popular uprising against his autocratic predecessor last year.  PAGE A3    DeLay Organization Indicted  A political organization formed by the House majority leader, Tom DeLay, has been indicted on charges of taking corporate money.  PAGE A12    Hints That Brain Is Evolving  Two genes involved in determining the size of the human brain have undergone substantial evolution in the last 60,000 years, researchers say, suggesting that the brain itself is still undergoing rapid evolution.  PAGE A14    Fashion Week, Day 1  Mixing frivolity and commerce, New York Fashion Week struts down the tented runway of Bryant Park with a round of parties and thoughts for the hurricane victims. Diary by Guy Trebay.  FASHION, PAGE C14  

INSIDE

The last time the Oakland Raiders were here, their season ended in a blizzard of consternation over a fumble-that-wasn't. The Tuck Rule was reborn in that snow bowl, and that game gave birth to the Patriots' dynasty.      The teams' fortunes have diverged since January 2002, when they met in that divisional playoff game, which ultimately led to the first of the Patriots' three championships. The Patriots have won the last two Super Bowls. After being blown out of the Super Bowl in January 2003, the Raiders are 9-23 over the last two seasons.  

The Patriots Deliver More of the Same

Article on hike along part of new San Francisco Bay Trail, 270-mile stretch of hiking trails and bike paths that passes through 47 cities and towns and nine counties and will eventually add 230 more continuous miles; photos; map (M)

Taking the Trail by the Bay

Sears Holdings Corp's chairman Edward S Lampert puts himself in charge of creative decision making, taking measure of personal responsibility for lifting Sears and Kmart out of long sales slump; move comes as Sears reports 2 percent decline in overall sales for second quarter, ended July 30, and as sales in stores open at least year dropped 0.3 percent at Kmart stores and 7.4 percent at Sears stores; company also demotes Alan J Lacy, longtime Sears, Roebuck executive, stripping him of chief executive's title; Aylwin B Lewis is named chief executive; Lacy will continue as vice chairman and board member and will work on merger integration and strategic issues; Sears reports net income of $161 million for second quarter compared to $154 million year earlier; photo (M)

Shake-Up at the Top at Sears

Alessandra Stanley reviews new sitcom The War at Home starring Michael Rapaport and Anita Barone; photos (M)

Neither the Parents Nor the Kids Are All Right

The Yankees cannot move into first place in the American League East this weekend. They made sure of that with another dreary loss to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays last night, the last installment of a dismal opening act to their three-game showdown with the Boston Red Sox.     While the Red Sox were losing at Fenway Park, the Yankees were struggling for hits against the Tampa Bay left-hander Mark Hendrickson at Yankee Stadium. They had one hit, a leadoff single, and no runs through six innings, dooming themselves to a 7-4 loss.  

Yankees Stumble in the Basement

The better moment for Andre Agassi may be yet to come at this United States Open, but whatever happens against Robby Ginepri in the next round or perhaps even Roger Federer in the final round, Agassi has already given himself the sort of buzz that validates his decision to keep putting his 35-year-old body through the wringer against the younger, quicker, ever-more-powerful set.     When you have won eight Grand Slam singles titles and played scores of big matches in various time zones, it is no mean feat to add to your greatest hits list in the quarterfinals of a major. But Agassi's 3-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (6) victory over James Blake, which began Wednesday night and ended very early Thursday morning, was one of the most dramatic and satisfying of his 20-year career.  

Agassi's Highlight Reel Makes Room for a Few More Memorable Frames

In a city where, for some time now, the dark pulse of violence has receded, it was a shocking crime -- a baby stabbed in the stomach, in her stroller, in the light of 5 p.m., on a public sidewalk only blocks from home.     The cruelty was appalling. So were the suddenness and lack of a discernible motive. The victim was 10 months old. Her nanny screamed for help, the bleeding child in her arms.  

September 9, 2005

Headlines from September 9, 2005

What Lies Beyond Poetry and Music

Free the Bear, Please (It's a Symbol)

Dance, a Last Resort, Rises on Reality TV

The Human Voice of 9/11

No Trouble for Federer as He Cruises Into Semifinals

Billboard 200

Most Wanted

Now 19

The Emancipation Of Mimi

Monkey Business

Harlem: Diary Of A Summer

Historical Context for September 9, 2005