The Amish Project
Watching her lightning-quick changes from one character to the next is a big part of the evening’s thrill.
Speak Now
This promising tale is muddled by credibility problems.
Maria de Buenos Aires
What the work intends to convey doesn’t matter as much as how colorfully and inventively it comes across.
Bricolage stages the outrageous Hunter Gatherers
A farce by up-and-coming playwright Peter Sinn Nachtrieb peels back the thin veneer of civilized behavior
Does Sandow Birk’s American Qu’ran foster interfaith understanding, or merely court more controversy?
An illuminated Koran juxtaposes Koranic verses with images of disasters including the 9/11 attacks.
Dance Alloy has a new show — and a new home for its mainstage productions.
“We’re striving more than ever to be a hub for the Pittsburgh dance community.”
On the Record with UPMC researcher Dr. Brian Primack
A UPMC study released April 4 indicates that teens who listened to the most music were 8.3 times more likely to be depressed than the teens who listened the least. The study, led by UPMC doctor Brian Primack, examined 106 teens, 46 of whom had been diagnosed with a major depressive disorder. Primack talked to…
Pittsburgh Schools, Pitt ‘re-examining’ relationship at University Prep School
“We’re not doing as well as we need to.”
Allegheny County Port Authority Faces Even Harder Times, Choices in the Future
“If you start projecting over five years, you can’t imagine what the numbers become.”
Mesob Across America
A local writer pens a book about Ethiopian food
Brillobox weekly pub quiz puts patrons to the test
“In the event of a tie, get ready to fight for it.”
Record Store Day: Local stores offer sales and exclusive releases on April 16
Record Store Day was dreamt up in 2007 by music lovers concerned about the plight of the small, independent music-seller.
Savage Love
My wife and I click on just about every level — parenting, money, religion, politics, etc. — except for sex. After our last child was born, my advances were increasingly rejected. To avoid pressuring her, I stopped initiating. One week passed, nothing. A month passed, nothing. A YEAR passed, nothing. Depression and anger set in.…
MP3 Monday: Chux Beta
Hey yinzers! Wishing it were still Friday? Of course you aren’t, because while Monday does mean the workweek has started, it also means that I have a new mp3 for you. Since I can’t turn back time, a track from Chux Beta’s upcoming album, Heartbroken Underground, will just have to suffice. “Different Kind of Crazy,”…
Quick reviews: Total Science at BBT, Mochipet at Brillobox
The BBT gets packed to the point of inevitable “dancing on someone else”-type crowding maybe a handful of times a year. This week’s FUZZ! drum-and-bass night was one of those nights. The normally lax dance floor that often has at least an arm’s-width distance between dancers was packed shoulder-to-shoulder with a crowd of bass lovers,…
Political Poster Artist and Activist Josh MacPhee Speaks
This founding member of the Justseeds Artists Cooperative visits to talk at the closing reception for the most comprehensive exhibit of his work to date. MacPhee, based in Brooklyn, edited or co-edited a couple books based on touring exhibits of poster art, and two of those tours have reached Pittsburgh. Signs of Change: Social Movment…
County HRC frustrated by domestic-partner benefit delays
The county’s Human Relations Commission continues to play the waiting game with county officials on the implementation of domestic partner benefits. During its monthly meeting yesterday, commissioners signed off on a letter to the county solicitor, citing the one-year anniversary of County Executive Dan Onorato’s request for the commission to make the recommendation. The letter…
2011-12 Speakers’ Series
The former Drue Heinz Lectures and Robert Morris University’s Pittsburgh Speakers Series recently announced their line-ups, and both boast big names. Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures (www.pittsburghlectures.org) has renamed its series Literary Evenings, Monday Night Lectures. It opens Sept. 19 with venerable investigative reporter Seymour M. Hersh, whose latest book, Chain of Command, explores the early…
Short List: Week of April 7 – 14
Thu., April 7 — Words While graduates of Taylor Allderdice High have graced the cover of Rolling Stone (see “Khalifa, Wiz”), few have gone on to be members of a musical group voted “Beijing Band of the Year.” But writer, stay-at-home dad and rock-star-in-China Alan Paul can claim that distinction. All the details, and other…
Soul Surfer
In 2003, when Hawaiian Bethany Hamilton was only 13, a shark bit off her entire left arm. Remarkably, Bethany continued to pursue her dream of becoming a professional surfer. Her story is retold in Sean McNamara’s sunny, inspirational bio-doc, with (a slightly older) AnnaSophia Robb portraying Bethany. (Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt play her surfer…
Of Gods and Men
The French monks in an Algerian religious community, c. 1996, face a dilemma: Islamic radicals have killed some foreigners, and the monks could be next. Their principled leader wants them to refuse protection from the corrupt government, which respects their work but still sees them as colonials. Some of the brothers say that staying amounts…
Hop
A slacker (James Marsden) takes in the Easter Bunny’s equally slothful son, E.B. (voice of Russell Brand), who aspires to be a drummer. Tim Hill directs this not-very-funny comedy, a mix of digital animation and live action. First, Hop makes up a silly backstory about the Easter Bunny, who is a sort of springtime Santa…
Hanna
When two sets of professional assassins get in each other’s sights, you can pretty much guess what’s gonna happen: a lot of chasing, eluding and killing. And because this lot all seem to have an unlimited travel pass to everywhere, also lots of country-hopping, from Virginia to Morocco, with stops in the Arctic and several…
The Elephant in the Living Room
You need a license to have a dog, but in many parts of the U.S., there’s no paperwork required to keep a potentially deadly animal as a pet. Michael Webber’s fascinating and occasionally alarming documentary looks at exotic pet-keeping, focusing on the area around Dayton, Ohio. There, we meet a local cop, Tim Harrison, who…
The Big Uneasy
Funnyman Harry Shearer takes the director’s seat for a film with few laughs: His (literally) muck-raking documentary lays out the case that most of the devastation in New Orleans attributed to Hurricane Katrina was not the result of an unthinkable natural disaster but rather stemmed from preventable human error. Shearer turns much of the film…
Win Win
Somewhere in New Jersey, Win Win introduces us to Mike, a decent family man with a struggling law practice. Mike (a wonderful Paul Giamatti) makes an unethical move: He collects the state-guardianship benefit for his cantankerous client, Leo (Burt Young). Then Leo’s troubled teen-age grandson, Kyle (Alex Shaffer) turns up, and Mike and his wife…
Jane Eyre
The handsome new adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s 1847 novel is another example of how good modern filmmaking can oil the rusty joints of creaky old storytelling. Director Cary Joji Fukunaga, keeps things strongly focused on the sensation of it all. There’s no voiceover, but the story unfolds through Jane’s point of view, which means that…
MauraMori Café
5202 Butler Street, Lawrenceville. 412-408-3160 Hours: Mon.-Fri 7 a.m.-3 p.m.; Sat.-Sun. 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Prices: $3-7 When we first heard of MauraMori Café, we couldn’t help but wonder what sort of exotic food the name portended. As it turns out, MauraMori is a simple portmanteau of the names of its owners (Steven and Maura…
As You Like It
Director Sam Turich pulls from many sources, from The Sopranos to some much-appreciated Bollywood.
Agnes of God and The Elephant Man
Both Agnes and Merrick are written as innocents, and that purity causes profound changes within those around them.
Mercy & The Firefly
Amy Hartman is a dramatist of boundless imagination, but Mercy feels more merciless.
Bill Putnam’s war photos are faces of battle, not in battle.
Half the shots are the real everyday of war: going on patrol, endless waiting.
Artist Jesse Hulcher’s STRAIGHT OUTTA CompUSA wittily deconstructs the foibles of a digital world.
Several pieces imply an interface that’s actually unavailable; other works suggest that some interfaces are best left unused.
On the Record with syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage
“The president of the United States is taking sides in a battle between a 14-year-old and his parents about his sexuality — and siding with the kid. That’s powerful.”
Gas companies waging PR battle over Marcellus Shale
“Changing perception is not as easy as starting out with proper perception.”
A dynamic new graphic novel tells the story of Roberto Clemente.
Author and artist Wilfred Santiago discusses his new graphic novel about Roberto Clemente.
Five questions with Mike Watt
The former Minutemen bassist discusses his latest rock opera
Critics’ Picks
Shows worth checking out this week include Wise Blood, The Mountain Goats and Tristen.
Controversial Pittsburgh Public School Board member Mark Brentley facing three challengers in upcoming primary
“I don’t know that anybody can question his passion. But there are some style issues.”
Street Sense: After 20 years, no end to the mystery of Pittsburgh streets
The first time I used a GPS, I nearly wept. I felt as if I’d been hobbling all my life and had at last been given a prosthetic leg.
DJ Terry Lee
Legendary local DJ returns to the airwaves, emcees Mysterians show
Question Mark and the Mysterians
“Mick Jagger – he was very dull on The Ed Sullivan Show. I was never influenced by anybody. And I continue to not be influenced by anybody.”
Good Cop/Bad Cop
Who is Tom Corbett going to be?
Gluuteny Bakery
A pioneering gluten-free bakery keeps up with demand.
Stirring Things Up
Contest success a snap for Embury bartender
Red Bull Music Academy reaches out to local musicians
“I’ll be honest: I don’t really drink Red Bull, but I’m pretty sure I’ll end up talking about it for the rest of my life.”
Savage Love
I came out as trans-something/genderqueer three years ago. I was born male but live my life predominately as female. I’m 25 now. Coming out involved accepting that it would complicate my ever finding someone. I haven’t dated since. Today, a guy asked me out while making me a sandwich in a cafe. He told me…
To do tonight: Pokey LaFarge at Thunderbird
So. It’s almost the end of the workday. You’re not sure what you’re getting into tonight. It’s Wednesday night, which, of course, is drinking-and-going-to-see-live-music night in your life. Here’s an idea: Pokey LaFarge and the South City Three play Thunderbird Cafe (4023 Butler St., Lawrenceville). The Midwest-born, St. Louis-based old-timey Americana musician is on Jack…
How about a Bullshit Prevention Act of 2011 instead?
I’m always sort of amused by US Rep. Tim Murphy. On the one hand, his Congressional bio brags on his academic accomplishments — he’s a child psychologist with a Ph.D. Reading over his CV, you might think he had some respect for the scientific process … until you get the part about his friendly ties…
