Pictures of a Thousand Words
How will Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration differ from Ed Rendell’s? One hint may be found in these “word clouds,” compiled with the online program Wordle. The cloud on top reflects the most repeated words used by Corbett in his inaugural speech — with the largest words having been used the most often. The cloud on…
Attack Theatre turns 15 in fine style.
The company rewarded fans with four works exemplifying the unique vision and style local audiences have come to cherish.
On The Record
Maurice Cox is a professor of architecture at the University of Virginia, and the former director of design for the National Endowment for the Arts. He visits Pittsburgh for a lecture and panel discussion on community design sponsored by the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh. 6 p.m. Mon., Jan. 31. Point Park University Center, 414…
Make a Move
HRC wants Onorato to act faster on partner benefits
Cop Drama
Police raid of video store raises free-speech concerns
An artist revisits a 35-year-old project about community that touches on Northern Ireland’s troubles.
Moving from Friend Map to Timelines is “like an expanded snapshot.”
Traces
The production needs judicious trimming and painstaking re-pacing.
A local writer publishes a book about his sojourn in the post-war Balkans.
“The ethnic conflict, I think, is so misconstrued.”
Cuban artists tackle racism in their homeland in Mattress Factory show.
It is as if Black Marat, lodged as he is in the bowels of the resurrected class hierarchy, is reduced to a martyr of mildew removal.
Pittsburgh Rock Music Awards debuts with help from notable locals
Judged by Anti-Flag’s Justin Sane and Rusted Root’s Liz Berlin, the event is the brainchild of Allie Nickel, a Pittsburgh musician who heads up a new online label.
Raising the Tiki Bar
When you’re a tiki-drink connoisseur, finding what you want can take some time. “I think I had the ‘Suffering Bastard’ before — it’s pretty good,” says Craig Mrusek, pondering the options at South Side’s Tiki Lounge. At 6 p.m., the place is nearly empty except for a giant wooden tiki figure. Nearby hangs a copy…
Peaceable Pastry
A drizzly January day doesn’t say “sidewalk food.” But I minded little while munching a couple of warm bolani outside the Bolani Pazi. This second iteration of East Liberty’s Conflict Kitchen — a takeout window serving street food from countries the U.S. is at odds with — offers the Hot Pocket-style item that’s ubiquitous in…
Savage Love
I’m sitting in my lover’s San Francisco apartment wondering what I’m doing. I flew out here to spend five glorious days with her. We connect sexually, we connect intellectually, and we make each other laugh. But she’s literally twice my age. In no way does this bother me, but she frets that she’s too old…
August Wilson Center Dance Ensemble
The Dynamic Men of Dance program this past weekend marked the ensemble’s debut as a professional company, but already it’s looking like a potent addition to Pittsburgh’s dance scene. That shouldn’t be much of a surprise, given that artistic director Greer Reed-Jones doubles as artistic director of Pittsburgh’s most venerable modern-dance outfit, Dance Alloy Theater.…
MP3 Monday: Justin Andrew
You may remember Justin Andrew from my column about him last year — in which we discussed his job as a sound tech at Brillobox. I mentioned in it that he plays music himself, and that’s what brings us back to him today. Justin — who used to be in the band Camera — now…
New developments on FOP hoax investigation
Our diligent reporter Chris Young has the latest on the police investigation of the FOP press release hoax. On Wednesday, police executed a search warrant on video-rental store Dreaming Ant, seizing a hard drive and wireless router the store shares with the Crazy Mocha coffee shop. Young has acquired the affidavit — a sworn statement…
PCA Artist of Year Closing Party
While one must empathize with any arts event happening this Sunday, there’s one I can recommend that won’t interfere with your game-watching — promise. It’s the closing event for the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts Artist of the Year and Emerging Artist of the Year shows, 1-4 p.m. Sun., Jan. 23 (at 6300 Fifth Ave.,…
Weekend updates: More on press-release hoax, council candidates, and a bit of self-aggrandizement
OK, just a few things in no particular order here. First, a quick update on the FOP hoax story we’ve been following. Fans of movie-rental spot Dreaming Ant will be happy to hear that it is back in business; police have returned the computer they seized Wednesday evening in an investiaation of a forged press…
Primary season update — an election that may go out like a Lamb
One disadvantage of being a weekly, obviously, is that a ton of shit happens the day your paper hits the stands, and you don’t get another crack at it in print for another seven days. And because we wait a day to post our print edition online — don’t ask — sometimes our stories are…
City police speak on hoax investigation
Intrepid reporter Chris Young has been trying to get to the bottom of last night’s police seizure of computer equipment at Dreaming Ant in Bloomfield. Here’s what he’s learned so far: Pittsburgh police detective James Glick confirms that officers seized a computer and wireless router from Dreaming Ant last night at around 5:30 p.m. They…
Winter Guide
Folks grumble about the cold winter: “Sure, it’s great if you’re a polar bear!” Well, yes, it is — look how much fun our local polar bears are having getting their chill on at the Pittsburgh Zoo. So, take a tip from them: Shrug into something warm and fuzzy, and get out there. Below we’ve…
Police, investigating press release hoax, raid Bloomfield Avenue business (UPDATED)
Last night, Pittsburgh police raided the Bloomfield Dreaming Ant/Crazy Mocha — apparently gathering information about the dissemination of a hoax press release involving the Jordan Miles case. Word of the raid has been circulating online. And an employee of Crazy Mocha, Shannon Lyons, confirms that police seized computer equipment from the coffee shop and video…
Short List: Week of January 20 – 27
The fledgling August Wilson Center Dance Ensemble earns its wings in The Dynamic Men of Dance … Celebration of the Black Man. The Jan. 21 and 23 program features world premieres from three noted African-American choreographers. As part of the Center’s year-long Celebration of the Black Man, the 2-year-old, eight-member resident company, led by Dance…
CD Reviews
Atlas Atlas EP (self-released) In five songs clocking in at just over 20 minutes, Atlas makes a show of its versatility: While maintaining a contemporary vibe, the band jumps from gypsy rock (“Breathe In”) to post-new wave (“At the Water’s Edge”) and danceable post-punk. It’s not disjointed, though — a tribute to the band’s chemistry…
The Way Back
It’s an incredible, and reputedly true, story: During World War II, prisoners escape from a Siberian gulag and walk 4,000 miles to freedom in India. But that doesn’t automatically make an inspiring film. Because we know the outcome, the execution matters. And while Peter Weir’s film has some lovely scenery, it misses building emotional connections.…
Wasteland
Lucy Walker’s documentary tags along as artist Vik Muniz returns to his native Brazil, and engages workers at Rio de Janiero’s massive landfill in an art project. Muniz photographs these catadores — they pick through the trash for recyclables — then, with their help, re-creates the photos as giant mosaics using trash. (Pictured: A junk-filled…
Today’s Special
Samir (Aasif Mandvi, of The Daily Show) is a competent sous chef in a fancy Manhattan restaurant, but he lacks the heart for becoming a truly great cook. Perhaps you’re thinking: All he needs is a few hard bumps in the road to set him on his journey to Better Person. Sure enough, Samir winds…
Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and The Magnetic Fields
The Magnetic Fields’ Stephin Merritt is an indie cult figure: His chameleonic tendencies as a songwriter belie a post-ironic awareness of the song as an artistic form. Kerthy Fix and Gail O’Hara’s beautifully filmed and edited documentary profile goes behind the scenes, exploring the sometimes-controversial curmudgeon’s process and musical relationships. Starts Fri., Jan. 21, through…
Marwencol
This fascinating 82-minute documentary takes us inside the damaged yet imaginative mind of Mark Hogencamp. Beaten into a coma by five men in 2000, Hogencamp seeks recovery — both physically and psychologically — in “Marwencol,” a miniature, World War II-era town he created in his backyard using action figures. Hogencamp becomes consumed by his “society…
The Dilemma
A dude (Vince Vaughn) catches the wife of his best bud and business partner (Kevin James) cheating, then makes a colossal mess of not telling — then, telling — him about it. Ron Howard’s misfire of a relationship comedy is spectacularly unfunny, and is not helped by characters who are variously unlikable, loud, shrill and…
Rabbit Hole
Things could hardly be better for Becca (Nicole Kidman) and Howie (Aaron Eckhart): nice house, nice garden, a station wagon, and plenty of time to play squash and see the latest production of Stoppard. If only Danny, their 4-year-old son, hadn’t died eight months earlier. Howie wants to grieve openly and talk about it; Becca…
The Green Hornet
The crime-fighter Green Hornet had a mostly successful career in radio, matinee serials, television and comics. But all that goodwill has been squandered in this latest dull, unfunny mish-mash from Michel Gondry, and starring Seth Rogen as the green-suited dude and Jay Chou, as his assistant Kato. This latest iteration offers plenty of wink-wink but…
Juniper Grill offers Golden State Cuisine
Citizens of Western Pennsylvania, rejoice: You’re closer to California than you think.
Dean and Britta at Carnegie Lecture Hall: A quick debriefing in which I confess some disappointment
Like many of you — but not TOO many of you, sadly, as the venue was woefully underfilled — I went to see Dean & Britta perform the songs of Galaxie 500 last weekend at the Carnegie Lecture Hall in a concert put on by the Warhol. It’s been bandied about by the local music…
