The Sky Has No Limits
B ased on their name — inspired by a Kevin Bacon movie that was based on Lanford Wilson’s play — the members of Cincinnati’s Lemon Sky refer to their particular genre as “Citrus Rock.” But guitarist/vocalist Ed Bruker’s tale of the band knocking down a chandelier in a Columbus, Ohio dive bar through the sheer…
Onstage: Rent
The new Incline Theater continues its quest for audiences seeking edgier shows than those presented at its sister theater, the Covedale Center. The Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent is a big, challenging work with strong subject matter — addiction, poverty and AIDS. But it’s also a love story inspired by the passionate artists…
Holiday Gifts for Food Lovers
H opefully, by now the ridiculous fervor over the red Starbucks coffee cup is over and we can get down to the real meaning of the holiday season: gift giving! Seriously though, we know you’ve got some food-frenzied folks on your list, and while it’s easy enough to appease them with a restaurant gift certificate,…
Morning News and Stuff
Good morning, Cincinnati! Here are your morning headlines. • Cincinnati Parks Director Willie Carden is under fire again. This time for messing with one of a reporter's all time favorite things: public records. Carden recently changed the retention schedule, a listing of public records available in the Parks Department for public use, without state or local…
On Broadway in New York: Growing Up, Out and Wise
I had the opportunity to see Fun Home on Nov. 11. I enthusiastically second its surprising Tony Award win as 2015’s best musical. (It beat out the odds-son favorite, An American in Paris.) Based on cartoonist Alison’s Bechdel’s “graphic memoir,” the show has been brought to the stage using Lisa Kron’s wise and insightful script…
On Broadway in New York: An Exploration Leading to Self-Awareness
Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was in part a tribute to Sherlock Holmes, although the hero in the 2003 mystery novel is an autistic British teenager, not the distinguished private detective of Edwardian England. However, Christopher Boone, age 15, is every bit as proficient at deductive reasoning as his…
On Broadway in New York: Entertaining and Frightening
When you enter the Broadway’s Booth Theatre to see Robert Askins’ play, Hand to God, you’re looking at a Sunday School classroom in Texas with cinderblock walls painted blue and windows high enough to let you know it’s in the basement. Posters with wholesome Christian messages are neatly hung there, and a small puppet theater…
On Broadway in New York: Spoofing Shakespeare and Theater in General
I turned up at Broadway’s St. James Theatre on Nov. 12 for Something Rotten with moderate expectations. I had seen a number from the show on the Tony Awards last June, so I knew it was an amusing backstage mash-up of Elizabethan England and musical theater. It sounded like fun, but I wasn’t completely prepared…
On Broadway in New York: Beautiful Scenes and “Fidgety Feet”
Gorgeous is the word for the Broadway production of An American in Paris, a stage adaptation of the 1951 musical movie starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron. It’s a feast for the eyes and the ears with George Gershwin’s glorious music performed by an attractive cast wearing an ever-changing array of beautiful costumes. Bob Crowley…
Beyond the Books
While this time of year is the season to go out and explore various holiday happenings, sometimes it’s nice to have a quiet movie night. As a seasoned college student, some of my favorite times with friends are the nights we hole up in bed and watch a Disney film. So when I saw that…
Morning News and Stuff
Good morning all. Hope you had a great weekend and are quickly chipping away your holiday shopping duties. I… have barely even started, unfortunately. Anyway, here’s the news today. The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority could see a boost from a new federal transportation spending package. The five-year, $305 billion transit spending bill is expected…
Your Weekend To Do List (12/4-12/6)
FRIDAY SPORTS: REDSFEST So maybe they came in last in the NL Central last season, but they’re still our Cincinnati Reds, and while they may not win the season, they always win the traditions. Redsfest is the team’s annual winter warm-up, offering fans of all ages a chance to interact with Reds past, present and future…
Memorial Marker Unveiled For 1979 Who Concert Tragedy
The cold temperature Thursday night was appropriate for the solemn gathering on the plaza outside the main entrance of U.S. Bank Arena. Since the 30th anniversary of the Dec. 3, 1979 Who concert tragedy — 11 people died in the crush trying to get inside the doors of what was then Riverfront Coliseum — Cincinnati…
Krampus
I may end up sounding a bit Scrooge-like, but there’s something deliciously intriguing in the premise of Krampus, a story about dissatisfaction among a dysfunctional family during the holiday season that results in the emergence of a Christmas demon. Forget Santa Claus leaving coal in your stocking — now there’s an evil spirit of the…
Stage Door
December is full of shows for your holiday viewing pleasure: Every five years or so, Ensemble Theatre rolls out a new production of its holiday rendition of Cinderella. This one just opened on Wednesday, and while it’s the same material that was presented in 2005 and 2010, it’s been freshened with a new set and…
Morning News and Stuff
Hey all! I’m busy today working on a cover story about the economic future of Cincinnati’s DIY spaces (yes, really, we do weird stuff here in the news department) so let’s keep it short and sweet for news today. Here are a few things to take you into your weekend. • The Southwest Ohio Regional…
Chi-Raq
Teyonah Parris, seemingly ready for a full-on breakout after attracting attention last year in Dear White People, leads the charge in Spike Lee’s latest, a modern adaptation of Aristophanes’ ancient Greek play Lysistrata. The narrative focuses on the efforts of the title heroine who rallies women to withhold sexual favors as a means of forcing…
‘Anomalisa’ in the Running for Academy Award Nominations
There looks to be another very artful Cincinnati-related movie, besides Carol, that is on important Best Films of 2015 lists, wins critics awards and even figures in Oscar nominations. And it wouldn’t be Don Cheadle’s Miles Ahead, which like Carol was predominately filmed in Cincinnati but set in New York. Sony Classics isn’t planning to…
Morning News and Stuff
Good morning, Cincinnati! Here are your morning headlines. • Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters yesterday released video footage of the June 19 Madisonville shooting of Cincinnati Police Officer Sonny Kim. The video from Officer Tom Sandmann's dash cam shows suspect Trepierre Hummons charging off screen while Officer Kim is seen lying on the ground with…
Considering the Hierarchy of Suffering
No one in a newsroom is a stranger to the hierarchy of suffering.If arguments around the news desk aren’t enough to drive home that reality, our readers, viewers or listeners do. Whatever jaded journalists feel, victimhood has become a source of cohesion, power and pride; my Holocaust is worse than yours. The heart of the…
This Week’s Food and Dining Events
WEDNESDAY 02CityBeat’s Bourbon & Bacon — If you like eating divine swine products or drinking high-quality brown liquor, head to New Riff Distillery for CityBeat’s annual Bourbon & Bacon party. Guests will enjoy samples of bacon-inspired dishes from local restaurants like Holtman’s Donuts, Pompilios, Cuban Pete, BrewRiver GastroPub and more. Wash the pork down with…
Event: Repeal Day Celebration
On Dec. 5, 1933, the United States passed the 21st Amendment, effectively repealing Prohibition. Celebrate by getting drunk on Sidecars and Mary Pickfords in Jazz Age costumes at the Metropole at 21c. The restaurant and bar’s Repeal Day Celebration honors the end of Prohibition with 1920s tunes, a burlesque show and classic speakeasy cocktails. Period-inspired…
Event: Dad Day at Rhinegeist
Party in plaid with dad at Rhinegeist. The brewery celebrates the release of its seasonal brew Dad — a hoppy holiday ale — with a party featuring commemorative glassware and posters for the first 100 guests. The event is BYOD and BYOP (bring your own dad and bring your own plaid), with a special #DadPlaid…
Holiday: O.F.F. Market
Brunch, booze and shopping await at the O.F.F. Market’s winter 2015 event. Vendors, ranging from small businesses and entrepreneurs to farmers and chefs, will sell items specifically geared toward the holiday season. Accompany your perusal with drinks from a full bar that includes local craft brews, mimosas and a special-recipe bloody mary. The event also…
Music: Sleater-Kinney
I t seems slightly inaccurate to describe the past decade without the ebullient adrenaline rush of Sleater-Kinney as a hiatus. It implies that the trio’s members — guitarists/vocalists Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker and drummer Janet Weiss — have been preoccupied with the scent of long-neglected roses and gazing into heretofore unexplored navels between 2005’s…
Holiday: Trans-Siberian Orchestra Winter Tour
As part of its annual winter tour, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra is visiting Cincinnati for a musical retelling of a holiday story, recounted in the orchestra’s unique audio-visual way. This year’s performance is “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve,” which follows a young girl who runs away from home and finds herself among the ghosts of an…
Holiday: Holiday Market at Findlay Market
Findlay Market’s Holiday Market is a shopping wonderland. Local artisans and craft vendors will bring holiday joy through old-fashioned gifts, food and seasonal drinks. Live holiday music will be provided by Cincinnati choirs and musicians while scavenger hunts and craft beer keep market-goers occupied. There will also be holiday cooking demos, kids activities and a…
Art: Everything is Going to be Alright at the Art Academy
The Art Academy of Cincinnati hosts an exhibition reception for Alabama-based photographer Jared Ragland’s show of lens-based art at the AAC’s Covergys Gallery. Ragland is the former photo editor and digital imaging specialist for the White House under both the Bush and Obama presidencies, and Everything Is Going To Be Alright ostensibly demonstrates the influence…
Event: Redsfest
So maybe they came in last in the NL Central last season, but they’re still our Cincinnati Reds, and while they may not win the season, they always win the traditions. Redsfest is the team’s annual winter warm-up, offering fans of all ages a chance to interact with Reds past, present and future with autograph signings,…
Holiday: Christmas Saengerfest
Three years ago, Saengerfest — a German tradition that celebrates choir singing groups, or Saengerbunds — returned to Cincinnati after a 60-year hiatus. Although the event was hugely popular after it was established locally in 1849, popularity died down with the rise of the May Festival. Now, Saengerfest is back, and it’s taking over four historical…
Music: Jess Lamb
This Friday, Cincinnati-based singer/songwriter Jess Lamb will be putting out a new EP, her first major release since her post-American Idol single, “Memories.” In honor of the release, Lamb is performing a free show Friday at MOTR Pub. Joining Lamb and her band for the 9 p.m. event are Dayton, Ohio’s Moira and Cincinnati’s The…
Music: Cornmeal
This May, progressive, improv-happy Newgrass ensemble Cornmeal released Slow Street, its first album in nine years. The full-length came after the 15-year-old Chicago-based crew reconfigured its lineup; new members include drummer Drew Littell, guitarist Scott Tipping (from Backyard Tire Fire) and fiddler Phil Roach (Giving Tree Band). Guided by founding members Chris Gangi (bass) and…
Onstage: This is Our Youth
Wayward young people working hard to grow up — that’s the big picture for Kenneth Lonergan’s drama about three friends on the cusp of adulthood navigating their lives in 1982 New York, out from under their dysfunctional parents but still making a mess of things in the arenas of friendship and love. In this local…
Holiday: Wiley Wahoo’s Winter Wonderland
This special holiday celebration is part of MainStrasse Village’s series of Christmas events. The animated holiday attraction includes a candy cane forest, ice-skating dogs, photos with Santa and more in Goebel Park. The holiday fun keeps going this weekend with a visit from Saint Nicholas on Sunday — similar to Santa, but much more fond…
Comedy: Randy Liedtke
Randy Liedtke is a Los Angles-based comedian who hails from Oregon. He’s known for obtuse jokes that feature odd turns. “The last few days of my grandmother’s life was spent in a hospice home surrounded by her family,” he tells an audience. “It was getting late at night so we ordered a pizza and the…
Music: Who Concert Tragedy
It’s been a long time coming, but Cincinnati is set to mark this week’s 36th anniversary of the 1979 Who concert tragedy with the dedication of a permanent memorial marker by the site. On Dec. 3, 1979, 11 people were crushed to death outside Riverfront Coliseum (now U.S. Bank Arena) when entrance doors didn’t open…
‘Carol’ Wins Major Best Film Prize
The Cincinnati-filmed Carol has just won the first big critics poll of the year — the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film of 2015. The announcement was made this afternoon, following voting by the group. Directed by Todd Haynes from the novel The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith, it concerns a…
Festivals for the Rest of Us
Antique Christmas — The Taft Museum of Art’s annual holiday display features antique decorations, toys and ornaments, including Italian ornaments created just after World War II. Also showcased is a Noah’s Ark display from Germany with more than 200 animal figurines. Through Jan. 3. $10 adults; $5 children 17 and under. Taft Museum of Art, 316…
Last-Minute Gift Guide
Scented soy candles $18 each, Oak.Isaac, MiCA 12/v, 12th and Vine streets, OTR, shopmica.com. Unicorn mount ornament $20, Cincinnati Art Museum gift shop, 953 Eden Park Drive, Eden Park, shop.cincinnatiartmuseum.org. Maverick Chocolate drinking chocolate $18, 129 W. Elder St., Findlay Market, OTR, 513-381-0561 (call for availability) maverickchocolate.com. Clove and nutmeg goat milk soap $6.25, Honey…
Festivus Dinner
G et out your unadorned aluminum poles, folks: Dec. 23 is fast approaching, and whether you’re a Seinfeld fan or not, the “Festivus for the Rest of Us” is a great excuse to gather your friends and loved ones, air your grievances and celebrate everyone’s favorite made-up secular holiday with a delicious home-cooked meal. What…
The Holiday Issue 2015: Cincinnati Festivus
I t’s been nearly 20 years since the famous Seinfeld episode “The Strike” introduced America to the concept of Festivus, the Costanza family’s long-lost nondenominational anti-holiday. In typical sitcom fashion, three narratives finally converge around the Costanza dinner table, each predictable and set in motion by Kramer himself, who views the confluence of confrontations as…
Morning News and Stuff
Good morning, Cincinnati! I'm back from Thanksgiving in Texas where the weather was actually colder and wetter than here. That's a definite win for the north. Here are your headlines: Ever since Mayor John Cranley's park tax levy failed, the city has been looking for other ways to fund the highly anticipated Wasson Way bike…
Beer to Help You Through the Holidays
You’ve survived Black Friday and Thanksgiving, and now you just need to get through the rest of the year. Thankfully, beer — especially holiday ales and warming stouts — can help with that. New Beers • In November, Taft’s Ale House released their first 16-ounce cans, Liquid Advent Chocolate Brown Porter. The beer, a play…
Holidays on the Half-Shell
O ysters and oyster stew aren’t what you would usually expect to see on an American Christmas dinner table, but, as it turns out, the briny bivalves have a long holiday tradition in Cincinnati. The popularity of oysters in the Queen City started with an influx of European immigrants in the 19th century, especially Irish…
Netflix and Bill
Bona fide cool guy Bill Murray has been spending some time in Cincinnati lately as his son serves as assistant coach to the undefeated Xavier men’s basketball team. The comedy legend seems to pop up at a lot of normal places around the world — as well-documented on the Internet — from bachelor parties and…
The Future of Art House Theaters and Film Festivals in the Queen City
In 2008, a restaurant explosion began in Over-the-Rhine’s Gateway Quarter on Vine Street with Lavomatic, which has been replaced by Krueger’s Tavern (from the owners of Bakersfield and The Eagle), while Daniel Wright’s dining empire blossomed to include Senate, Abigail Street and Pontiac Bourbon & BBQ. A Tavola, Taste of Belgium and others have filled…
Growing up Carlin
Fans of legendary comedian George Carlin who are interested in the mayhem that went on behind-the-scenes during his most prolific years can now get an up-close and personal view. Carlin’s only child, his daughter Kelly, has written a memoir, A Carlin Home Companion: Growing up with George. It’s an exquisitely written “warts and all” look…
Downtown’s U.S. Bank Arena Gets a Memorial Marker to Commemorate the 1979 Who Concert Tragedy
It’s been a long time coming, but Cincinnati is set to mark this week’s 36th anniversary of the 1979 Who concert tragedy with the dedication of a permanent memorial marker by the site. On Dec. 3, 1979, 11 people were crushed to death outside Riverfront Coliseum (now U.S. Bank Arena) when entrance doors didn’t open…
Visionaries at Work
F or the nonprofit organization Visionaries + Voices, which helps artists with disabilities learn to create and sell their work, the upcoming Double Vision auction of art is a crucial event. Held annually, it’s the organization’s biggest and most high-profile public fundraiser. V+V artists team up with those from the outside community to create work…
Council Poised to Vote on Tax Break for Hotel at Former Anna Louise Inn Site
Cincinnati City Council will soon vote on tax abatements worth more than half a million dollars for a controversial luxury hotel project undertaken by Eagle Realty at the former site of the Anna Louise Inn women’s shelter downtown. Council’s Budget and Finance Committee voted to advance a Community Reinvestment Area tax abatement for the project…
Cincinnati Planned Parenthood Clinic to Stay Open
Cincinnati’s last remaining women’s clinic that provides abortions will remain open until at least May, following a last-minute decision by the Ohio Department of Health to grant it a license. The decision is the latest in a long-running series of events that has at times brought Mount Auburn’s Elizabeth Campbell Medical Center to the brink…
Promising a Future
E lection Day and the chaos it brings has just barely passed, but community leaders and educators haven’t wasted any time in getting a head start on pushing to put a funding initiative for city-wide universal preschool on next year’s ballot. Preschool Promise, an initiative led by StrivePartnership, a coalition of educators, city officials and…
Black Power Mixtape
Sixty years ago on Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, that bespectacled Southern seamstress, transferred the modern civil rights movement from its dormant state of literal leaderlessness when she refused to move from her seat. Her accidental tourism also forced the heads of Southern civil rights counsels to finally acknowledge, include and utilize the skills of…
Worst Week Ever! Dec. 02-08
Oakland A’s Pitcher Imperils National Security, Hosts Syrian Immigrants for Turkey Day Syrians should all be locked up because some of them might not be nice people. It just makes sense. There are plenty of Facebook memes that succinctly explain this irrefutable line of reasoning, but not everyone gets them. One such individual is Major…
Wu-Tang Sells Super-Rarity
HOT: Wu-Tang Sells Super-Rarity In one week, Adele sold several million copies of her latest album and likely made a fortune. Wu-Tang Clan also recently raked in a ton of cash, but the legendary Hip Hop group did so by selling a single album. One copy of the collective’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin…
Feats of Strength
L ike most great sports rivalries, the magnitude of the Crosstown Shootout is built upon decades of animosity. Long before Xavier constructed its state-of-the-art arena and grew its brand of “mid-major” college hoops into an inimitable NCAA Tournament-worthy program, the small school three miles up the road from the University of Cincinnati has been scrapping…
