Opera Theater’s SummerFest with Carmen and Night Caps
Opera Theater’s SummerFest with Carmen and Night Caps It’s pretty rare — next to unheard-of — for a long-established performing-arts group to reinvent its season the way Opera Theater of Pittsburgh is doing this year. As I detailed in a preview for CP, the 35-year-old OTP has gone from presenting four shows scattered throughout the…
Lynn Cullen Live 07/10/12
Video Archive Phone guest: Susan; Olympic uniforms look a bit militant; lack of news in the summer; people’s willingness to be delusional; some people coming around to global warming because of the high temperatures; McCutchen & the Home Run Derby; Wisconsin: home of the largest inland nudist beach & possibly the 1st openly gay member…
Lynn Cullen Live 07/09/12
Video Archive Pirates pride; Obits: Ernest Borgnine, actor & Dr. Gabriel Nahas, marijuana demonizer; Congressman Barney Frank married boyfriend last weekend; record breaking high temperatures being set this summer; carnivorous plants; microscopic fly larvae eats ants from the inside out; NYC subway renovations due to rising water; Obama & Romney vs. the Clintons; less than…
With mayoral friend seeking to lead it, Gertrude Stein Political Club weighs independence
The Gertrude Stein Political Club of Pittsburgh prides itself on its independence in endorsing political candidates. But some members worry that legacy could be in jeopardy as it seeks new leadership … and weighs an application from an employee in the Ravenstahl Administration. The long-standing club has, in recent years, struggled to find and maintain…
Lynn Cullen Live 07/06/12
Video Archive Guest: Susan Hansen, author; Reporters dressing for the elements; outsourcing; if you want a stable job, you need to provide a service; Swedish gov’t allowing prostitutes to claim benefits & sick days; voter ID; only 91% of PA registered voters have IDs; UPMC the top grossing hospital in the country; tax loophole for…
Olympus Mons release second album — 10 years after forming
OLYMPUS MONS CD RELEASE with SHADE, CLAIRE WITH THE TURBAN. 9:30 p.m. Fri., July 13. Brillobox 4104 Penn Ave. Bloomfield. $6. 412-621-4900 or brillobox.net If that band you formed in someone’s parents’ basement back in high school had lasted 10 years, you’d have something in common with the four guys in spacey alt-rock quartet Olympus…
A zombie-filled satire, discursive poetry and a macabrely comic graphic novel are among the works by local authors
Reviews of the first 50 pages of local releases. WORKING STIFFS. Don’t let the comic-book gore on the cover fool you: Lucy Leitner’s debut novel is a densely observed, wickedly funny social satire that just happens to be about zombies breaking out of the South Side pharmaceutical plant where they’re enslaved as factory drones. The…
Dirty Projectors make their way back to Pittsburgh after a six-year absence
DIRTY PROJECTORS with PURITY RING. 8 p.m. Wed., July 11. Mr. Small’s Theatre. 400 Lincoln Ave. Millvale. $20-22. All ages. 412-821-4447 or mrsmalls.com The Dirty Projectors of 2012 is a vastly different band from the Dirty Projectors that last played in Pittsburgh — at Garfield Artworks, way back in April of 2006. For one thing,…
Orange Flower Water
ORANGE FLOWER WATER continues through July 14. No Name Players at Studio Theatre Cathedral of Learning 4200 Fifth Ave. Oakland. nonameplayers.org Early on in the No Name Players production of Craig Wright’s Orange Flower Water, I realized my problem with plays about suburban infidelity. It’s that the adulterers in the play must never go to…
Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble returns for the summer
PITTSBURGH NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE Fridays and Saturdays throughout July, plus special program Wed., July 18. $15-30; season passes available. City Theatre 1300 Bingham St. South Side. 412-431-2489 or pnme.org Each year, Kevin Noe and a small group of musicians from around the country spend July in Pittsburgh — but it’s not exactly a summer vacation.…
Lynn Cullen Live 07/05/12
Video Archive Guest: Tom Sokolowski; “LOL;” fireworks fiasco in Illinois; The Kinsey 6 & Yiddish Macarena; Florida lifeguard fired for leaving his post….to help someone in the water; Magic Mike; Olympics athletes & technology: where do you draw the line?; God Particle theory has been proven; Go Pirates!; birth photography; vacation photography; no line between…
CD Reviews
The Color Fleet The Color Fleet (Self-released) The Color Fleet believes in the pop-song format in all its bounciness. The band’s self-titled, six-song EP is all catchy guitar riffs and brisk drum beats. Singers Lauren Shapiro and Emma Cox seem to think that even emotionally stormy lyrics can be catchy if they just yelp them…
Annie
ANNIE continues through Sun., July 8. Benedum Center 719 Liberty Ave.>br> Downtown. 412-456-6666 or pittsburghCLO.org It’s a hard-knock life, especially for critics who sit through countless revamps and rehashes of shows that, sometimes, were not very good in the first place. Then there’s Annie. The musical has always been an odd duck. With music by…
Critics’ Picks: July 5 – 10
[PUNK] + FRI., JULY 6 The former Misfits vocalist is back, this time performing under his own moniker. After fronting the iconic horror-punk band, Michale Graves ventured to other projects, such as his eponymous band Graves, and Gotham Road. Finally settling on a solo project, Graves has released two albums as well as a collaboration…
Savage Love
I’m really into having my balls sucked — just thinking about it turns me on. But whenever I’ve had my balls sucked, it hurts, and ball pain is not a kink of mine! It hurts enough to override any pleasure, and I have to tell my partner to stop. Is this normal? Is there something…
Chief Concerns: From union contracts to massive service cuts, new transit union head has full plate of issues
To say Steve Palonis is beginning his tenure as president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85 at a volatile time would be a bit of an understatement. The Port Authority of Allegheny County is currently facing a $64 million budget deficit as a result of flat state funding and growing legacy costs from former contracts.…
Executive privilege: Fitzgerald taking hands-on approach to solving PAT issues
When Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald took office in January, the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85’s contract with the Port Authority wasn’t set to expire for six more months. Still, Fitzgerald asked that the parties come to the table early. When throngs of revelers on the North Side overwhelmed the North Shore Connector in May,…
Sentence Structure: Juvenile sentencing decision will have big impact in Pa.
In September 1993, two teen-agers robbed and murdered Jay Weiss, a North Side pizza deliveryman. They took the pizza and the $100 he had on him and then escaped to a nearby vacant attic to feast. Not long after the murder, police found one of the teens, asleep, next to a half-eaten pizza and the…
The Bikinis
THE BIKINIS continues through July 14. South Park Theatre Corrigan Drive and Brownsville Road South Park. 412-831-8552 or southparktheatre.com In playwriting, is anything more sublime than a jukebox musical? Take some favorite oldies, write a script that loosely ties them together, and add choreography. Voila: Rock of Ages. Or Mamma Mia! Or Come Fly Away.…
Celebrating Without Fireworks
Fireworks affect me the same way they do any other Pittsburgher. And beer affects me the same way it does any other human being. So chances are good that I’ll be happy about the direction of our country on July 4, the day this issue comes out. But one of my biggest reasons for optimism…
Art happening Relative Positions takes over the Union Project
RELATIVE POSITIONS 7 p.m. Fri., July 6 (6 p.m. VIP reception). The Union Project. 801 N. Negley Ave. $15-25. shanasimmonsdance.com When people attend most plays or dance concerts, they expect to receive their money’s worth without leaving their seats. But on July 6, visitors to the Union Project will assume partial responsibility for their own…
Legume
Legume Bistro 214 N. Craig St. Oakland. 412-621-2700 Hours: Mon.-Thu. 5-9 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 5-10 p.m. Prices: Salads and small plates $8-12; main courses $18-27 Liquor: Full bar In its original incarnation, Legume managed to pack a lot of culinary ambition into a tiny storefront along Regent Square’s restaurant row. The husband-and-wife operating team were early…
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man Directed by: Marc Webb Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans In 3-D, in select theaters Is there anything left to say about a Spider-Man movie? Is there anything left to say with one? This material really isn’t great literature, even if our silk-spinning hero shares a hyphen with Moby-Dick. So the…
Marty’s Market is set to open in the Strip District
Regina Koetters, the owner of Marty’s Market, the new grocery store opening in the Strip District this month, operated a cash register Sunday for the first time in her life. She’s never stocked shelves, worked a deli counter or butchered meat. She’s never cooked in a restaurant or served food as a waitress. “I don’t…
Magic Mike
In Magic Mike, a comedy set in a Tampa male strip club, you will scope a lot of barely dressed, finely toned and manscaped dudes, variously bumping, grinding and gyrating for your viewing pleasure. There’s also an easy-to-follow plot that tips its hat to such classics as 42nd Street, Valley of the Dolls, Flashdance and…
YinzBurgh BBQ’s success comes from smoke and sauce
Richard Coursey, proprietor at YinzBurgh BBQ, abides by three maxims: Barbeque is a cuisine; barbecue sauce is a condiment; and the love is in the rub. Judge for yourself at his Bloomfield venue, which opened in February. (It’s mostly set up for take-out, with a couple of tables.) While your order is prepared, the affable…
People Like Us
This family drama from Alex Kurtzman has my vote for most meaningless title of the year, and I can’t say that what unfolded under this generic banner lent it any more heft. A young man named Sam (Chris Pine) is estranged from his Los Angeles family, but returns when his rock-producer father dies. And as…
Squirrel Hill’s Manor Theater opens new bar in lobby
Fancy sipping some of famed director Francis Ford Coppola’s chardonnay, or drinking a “Golden Globe,” while watching the latest buzz-worthy film? At Squirrel Hill’s Manor Theater, you can now have a drink while watching a movie … with a choice of 10 beers, six wines and eight specialty cocktails. During the Murray Avenue theater’s recent…
Ted
As a boy, John wished his teddy bear to life, and the two became best buds. But now, John (Mark Wahlberg) is in his mid-30s, and his boorish plush-buddy Ted (voice of Seth MacFarland) is keeping him from fully maturing. Instead, the two get baked and watch shitty movies, tell fart jokes and generally behave…
Short List: July 5 – 10
Kathryn Miller Haines is far too young to have lived in the 1940s, but she’s done pretty well with them. Her four Rosie Winter detective novels, set in wartime New York, are dense with period detail and snappy contemporary slang. Winter has run her course, but now Haines has a young-adult series featuring teen detective…
Your Sister’s Sister
Your Sister’s Sister Starts Fri., July 6. Harris A year after his brother’s death, Jack (Mark Duplass) is still depressed and angry. So Iris (Emily Blunt), his best pal and his brother’s former girlfriend, sends him off to her family’s isolated cabin to clear his head. But arriving there, Jack finds the place occupied by…
Filmmaker Duncan Campbell takes a deconstructive approach to documentary.
DUNCAN CAMPBELL continues through Sun., July 8. Carnegie Museum of Art 4400 Forbes Ave. Oakland. 412-622-3131 or www.cmoa.org Irish-born, Glasgow-based Duncan Campbell has built his career on the belief that documentary is “a peculiar form of fiction.” Campbell doesn’t reject documentary filmmaking but rather seeks to trouble its reception by producing videos that expose their…
