What you need to know about Pittsburgh Police body cameras and public access to footage
While many Pittsburgh police officers have already been equipped with body cameras, footage won’t always be accessible to the public.
Rejected cover designs from Pittsburgh City Paper’s Animal Issue
Behind-the-scenes of this week’s Pittsburgh City Paper cover design
Senyai Thai Kitchen, in Shadyside, offers some new dishes in a well-designed space
In the decades we’ve been dining out in Pittsburgh, our fair city has gone from having one Thai restaurant to an exciting variety. There is a place serving Thai food for every occasion, budget and palate, from simple to swank, and offering fare to those seeking the familiar to those who are more culinarily adventurous.…
Expanded gambling is a safe bet for Pennsylvania legislators
I’ll admit it. I feel a bit hypocritical when I write about the problems with expanded gambling in Pennsylvania. Why? Because I freaking love to gamble. I’ve played poker since I was 9 years old; I love the game. I play fantasy sports — baseball and football — and at one time I even played…
Savage Love
I had a great time at the live taping of the Savage Lovecast at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre. Audience members submitted questions on cards, and I tackled as many questions as I could over two hours — with the welcome and hilarious assistance of comedian Kristen Toomey. Here are some of the questions we didn’t…
Health-care workers, policy experts and politicians question Sen. Toomey’s commitment to opioid epidemic
Sen. Pat Toomey proposed shrinking funds to Medicaid expansion, which advocates say have helped in the battle against the opioid epidemic.
Listen Up! June 28 Issue
Music from the artists covered in tomorrow’s issue, today
OpenStreetsPGH returns to Downtown Pittsburgh
Photo highlights from OpenStreetsPGH’s event in Downtown Pittsburgh
What Cheer? Brigade throws the most gracious party you’ll ever be a part of
If you’ve never seen What Cheer? Brigade, imagine a small army of folks wearing marching-band gear with the biggest smiles on their faces, running through the crowd and crowd-surfing through trumpet solos.
MP3 Monday: The Petals
This week, we’re getting a sneak preview of the new album from The Petals.
Lynn Cullen Live 06/23/17
Video Archive Cosby not charged. Medicare under attack. RIP Bill Dana Audio Only Archive Stream or download the last 5 shows on the MP3 downloads page.
Pittsburgh goes pink to support Planned Parenthood, denounce proposed GOP health-care cuts
A draft of the legislation crafted by Republican senators would defund Planned Parenthood.
WWE robbed fans at Money in the Bank and rubbed it in on Smackdown
Music writer/wrestling super-fan Meg Fair explains the women’s Money in the Bank fiasco
Like so many former Western Pennsylvania company towns, Ford City is in dire need of a comeback
Don Mains has been trying to get someone to listen to his story for months. He called his local Armstrong County media, and even larger Pittsburgh-area outlets, with no success. He feels it’s imperative to tell his story about his town, Ford City, which he says has been hurt by the alleged sabotage of a…
Young Pittsburgh Passion women’s football team ends season with playoff loss in Chicago
EVANSTON, Ill. — The rain fell harder with each passing minute as the Pittsburgh Passion huddled in the aftermath of their loss in the second round of the Women’s Football Alliance Division I playoffs on Sat., June 17. The scoreboard showed the damage, a 45-0 Passion loss to the host Chicago Force — until it was…
In the Next Room or the vibrator play at Throughline Theatre Company
IN THE NEXT ROOM OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY continues through Sat., June 24. Throughline Theatre at the Henry Heyman Theatre, 4301 Forbes Ave., Oakland. $15-20. 800-718-4253 or throughlinetheatre.org You can’t accuse Sarah Ruhl of a slack imagination. She’s jammed enough stuff into In the Next Room or the vibrator play (now on stage at Throughline…
47 Meters Down
47 Meters Down Directed by Johannes Roberts Starring Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water … here comes Johannes Roberts’ watery-peril thriller 47 Meters Down. In it, two sisters are vacationing in Mexico. Kate (Claire Holt) is lively and fun; Lisa (Mandy Moore)…
Beatriz at Dinner
The gulf between the affluent and the ordinary, the careless and the careful, the destroyers and the nurturers, gets a run through the wringer in one comically tense dinner party, in Miguel Arteta’s social critique Beatriz at Dinner. In Los Angeles, Beatriz (Salma Hayek) works as an holistic massage therapist at a cancer clinic; she’s…
Critics’ Picks: BJ Barham at Club Cafe
[COUNTRY] + FRI., JUNE 23 Rockingham is BJ Barham’s first release outside his day job fronting the equally alt-country American Aquarium. On it, he croons about his grandpa’s exhausting years working at a tobacco company, and the small North Carolina town where he grew up. It all feels a little like when someone is wearing…
A review of Geeta Kothari’s debut story collection, I Brake For Moose
I Brake for Moose and Other Stories By Geeta Kothari Alleyway Books, 148 pages, $16.95 In “Home Is Another Country on TV,” a story in Geeta Kothari’s solid debut collection, the narrator begins by recalling two 14-year-old girls who committed suicide by laying on railroad tracks. She addresses an unnamed friend: Their hands were still…
Mike Wysocki’s list of sports’ greatest winners and losers
According to the City of Pittsburgh, 650,000 people crammed into Downtown on June 14 to celebrate the Pittsburgh Penguins’ fifth Stanley Cup win. This second-consecutive Cup makes the Pens one of the most successful American sports franchises of the past 50 years. Hashtags like #BurghProud, #PensParade and #BacktoBack began trending as fans celebrated the city’s…
Pittsburgh City Paper Booze Battles: Maggie’s Farm Rum Distillery vs. DiAnoia’s Eatery
Each week, we order the same cocktail at two different bars for a friendly head-to-head battle. Go to the bars, taste both drinks and tell us what you like about each by tagging @pghcitypaper on Twitter or Instagram and using #CPBoozeBattles. If you want to be a part of Booze Battles, send an email to…
Café Raymond, in the Strip District, makes a perfect stop for breakfast or lunch
Café Raymond 2009 Penn Ave., Strip District. 412-281-4670 Hours: Tue.-Sat. 8 a.m.-3 p.m.; Sun. 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Prices: $7-11 Liquor: None From a popular place to buy specialty foods, the Strip District logically evolved into a popular place to eat them. Lunchtime options run the gamut from humble pizzerias, street vendors and inexpensive international options…
Deutschtown gets a new coffeeshop
Kaffeehaus Café held its grand opening June 10, and it was an auspicious start. The corner coffeehouse in Deutschtown was “just bombed” with customers, says Tammy Waraks, co-owner with her husband, Chris. The Spring Hill couple — he’s in real-estate development — “really did this for the community,” she says. The modestly sized café, located…
New Orleans BBQ Shrimp
You will no doubt notice that there is no grill or barbeque sauce involved in making this “barbeque shrimp.” Like many things in New Orleans, it’s a bit of a mystery how this iconic dish got its name. We do know that the chef at Pascal’s Manale, in NOLA, invented the dish in 1953. Today,…
Critics’ Picks: Water Seed at Spirit
[FUNK] + THU., JUNE 22 If you’re one of the sorry souls who thinks funk is exclusive to the 1970s, then you can get lost. Or just go see Water Seed, the New Orleans-based funk band which often uses the hashtag #futurefunk to describe itself. The latest album, We Are Stars — with cover art…
Savage Love
I am a 34-year-old straight woman. I’m monogamous and have an avoidant attachment style. I’ve been seeing a guy I really like. He’s just my type, the kind of person I’ve been looking for my whole life. Thing is, he’s in an open relationship with someone he’s been with for most of his adult life.…
Critics’ Picks: WYEP Summer Music Festival at Schenley Plaza
[FESTIVAL] + SAT., JUNE 24 It almost feels like a glitch that Pittsburgh has so many free summer music festivals, but who’s complaining? As always, the WYEP Summer Music Fest, at Schenley Plaza, features an expertly curated lineup, including the extremely likable blues/soul of Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, the soul/funk of Pittsburgh-based The…
Short List: June 21-28
SPOTLIGHT: Sat., June 24 — Event Warning: If you are someone who likes narratives to make sense, takes things literally, or is otherwise averse to pop surrealism, the June 24 Multiple Choice Event Series might truly drive you insane. Of course, that could be a good thing: Kaiju Big Battel: Multiple Choice Versus, at the…
Hazedelic Juice Grenade New England Style IPA, Grist House Craft Brewery
“It hits on so many cylinders right now, because it’s warm and this is a very seasonal beer. The haziness and light citrus are perfect to compliment the weather.” Recommended by Sarah, bartender at Grist House Hazedelic Juice Grenade is available on draft at Grist House Craft Brewery, in Millvale.
40 Bands Highlight Pittsburgh’s Ladyfest 2017
Fri., June 23 The Shop 6:30 p.m. 4314 Main St., Bloomfield. $5. All ages WolfBlud Mani Pedi Lorenzo’s Oil Vytia Late Trash Bag Gooski’s 10 p.m. 3117 Brereton St., Polish Hill. $5. 21 and older Old Game Love Dumpster Reign Check Spinster Soft Gondola Sat., June 24 Cattivo 7 p.m. 146 44th St., Lawrenceville. $10.…
Critics’ Picks: The Regrettes at Mr. Smalls
[ROCK] + SUN., JUNE 25 Teens these days! All they care about is their phones and selfies and the Kardashians and making great music and politics and standing up for their rights and … wait, what? Teenagers now, as they always have, are making art that challenges the pea-brained adults who talk down to them.…
Xenia Rubinos taps hip hop, jazz and punk rock for her latest record, Black Terry Cat
XENIA RUBINOS 8 p.m. Mon., June 26. Club Café, 56 S. 12th St., South Side. $10. 412-431-4950 or clubcafelive.com Xenia Rubinos makes genre-defying music that doesn’t sound like anything you’ve ever heard before. The first time I heard “Hair Receding” was absolutely mind-bending. The suspenseful, melodic track off 2013’s Magic Trix somehow seamlessly fuses elements…
Rough Night
Here’s the thing about Rough Night, the new girls’-weekend-turns-into-a-hide-the-body-of-the-dead-alleged-sex-worker film, from director Lucia Aniello (mostly known as a writer/producer/director of Comedy Central’s Broad City): It’s not horrible. It’s an OK raunchy, unapologetically R-rated comedy that provides a few good belly laughs. Such films arrive every summer to watch in between super-hero films. But with this…
Clue: The Musical at the Summer Company
CLUE: THE MUSICAL continues through Sun., June 25. The Summer Company at Genesius Theater, Duquesne University, Uptown. $6.50-16.50. thesummercompany.com Clue, as a game, is timeless. Clue: The Musical, produced by the Summer Company and directed by Justin Sines, is a good time. Not deep. A bit cheesy. Fun. It’s no surprise that the one-act evolved…
A prominent local podcast marks three years
One of Pittsburgh’s more prominent podcasts, Marta on the Move, marks its third anniversary next month. The podcast, produced in her Crafton home by Marta Napoleone Mazzoni, covers anything and everything that interests her, from her trip to Morrocco to the Netflix show Stranger Things. And people listen. Mazzoni, a sales manager for Aldo’s Food,…
Tomchess and his oud take center stage at Pittsburgh’s Hambone’s
Tomchess with King Fez and Tom Moran 8 p.m. Fri., June 23. Hambone’s, 4207 Butler St., Lawrenceville. $10. 412-681-4318 The guitar might be the most fashionable string instrument to wield, but historically, it has nothing on the oud. The 11-string instrument was depicted in artwork that can be dated back as far as 3,000 B.C. …
Pittsburgh’s Ladyfest 2017 celebrates local lady music
It’s a festival that requires five months of planning by a small team of volunteers — a labor of love that occupies the space between day jobs and sleeping hours. Organizers coordinate venues, plan lineups and prepare for the party. This particular party is Ladyfest, an annual tradition in the city of Pittsburgh that sets…
Pittsburgh’s The Petals release second album Meld
C. Friend, The Petals, Luxury Machine, Carol Blaze, Pachyderm 7 p.m. Fri., June 30. Mr. Smalls Theater, 400 Lincoln Ave., Millvale. $10. 412-821-4447 or mrsmalls.com The first single from The Petals’ sophomore album, Meld, is titled “What If Being Dead Sucks?” It’s a good question — what if there’s no afterlife? Or there is, and…
This Week in Pittsburgh Sports History
June 22, 1908 The Pittsburgh Pirates’ Honus Wagner notches his 2,000th hit at Exposition Park, against Cincinnati. June 22, 1984 After losing a reported $10 million in their first and only season, the Pittsburgh Maulers play their last game in the USFL, shuttering the franchise thereafter. June 23, 1919 In a rematch two years in…
Elisa-Marie Alaio guides fireWALL dance theater in another premiere
STROKING ITS EGO Thu., June 22-Sun., June 25. fireWALL dance theater at Carnegie Stages, 25 W. Main St., Carnegie. $10-20. 724-873-3576 or firewalldance.com Elisa-Marie Alaio says she recently returned to Pittsburgh after a brief stint in Los Angeles with a mission: to take full ownership of fireWALL dance theater and bring it to a wider…
The Christians at Kinetic Theatre
THE CHRISTIANS continues through July 2. Kinetic Theatre at the New Hazlett Theater, 6 Allegheny Square East, North Side. $20-40. 888-718-4253 or kinetictheatre.org In Lucas Hnath’s exceptional 2014 play The Christians, the pastor of a contemporary megachurch announces that there is no hell. Then all hell breaks loose. Associate pastor Joshua, upset with Pastor Paul’s abrupt…
The Importance of Garnish
“Cocktails are a perishable, in-the-moment thing,” says Craig Mrusek, bartender at Station and cocktail writer (pen name Dr. Bamboo) for Bachelor Pad Magazine. Bar visits with Craig (you may have seen him behind a number of bars, including Verde and Tender) are a lesson in attention to detail; not only to what’s in the glass…
Activists call for a ban on pre-K-5 suspensions
According to Pittsburgh Public Schools data from the 2015-16 school year, African-American students in kindergarten through fifth grade were suspended at four times the rate of white students. Such numbers aren’t new. Around the country, black students have long been suspended at rates disproportionate to their white peers. But now, a national movement being led…
Like so many former Western Pennsylvania company towns, Ford City is in dire need of a comeback
Editor’s note: Click here to read our CP Longform version of this story. In 1993, Ford City, in Armstrong County, lost its massive PPG plate-glass factory after years of the company shedding jobs and lowering production. To replace that 200-acre facility, the town was able to obtain $12 million in funds to construct a 70,000-square-foot…
