Month: April 2007

Just b/c a theatre permits you to bring beverages into the seating area, that doesn’t mean the production onstage should take a backseat to your drinking.

If you are going to drink during the show, please use the following guidelines:

• What goes in, must come out – If you must get up to relive yourself, have the decency to wait until intermission before coming back in.
• Foresight is important – If you are exceptionally thirsty, bring up two drinks, that way you won’t feel compelled to get up in the middle of the act, clatter down the steps to the bar and return with full drinks. Also, if you & your friend are thirsty, can’t just one of you go to the bar? Did you both have to get up?
• Control your bottles – Should you find a collection of beer bottles beginning to amass at your feet, try not to kick them over.
• Maintain equality – Try to drink so that you and your date are at the same level of drunkenness. That way, when she wants to grope you in the dark, we don’t have to listen to your protests.

The Enquirer has a very positive review of the New Stage Collective's production of Albee's The Goat. I've personally yet to see the play, but I did crash the after party last night and the players and theatre backers are very excited. They are of course very pleased and relieved to have the space opened. A lot of hard work went into transforming the space and it really looks great. The set for the Goat takes over the whole room and the seating feels like you are sitting in the dining room watching the story unfold. I sat in it at their open house, so I'm projecting reality here, but that vibe is just obviously there, especially with the odds and ends chairs lined up for the audience. I for one will be taking Jackie Demaline's advice and seeing the play soon. Get you tickets now, with a review like this they should start to sell some shows out. Check out Thursdays or Sunday's matinées for a better lock on a seat.

Cross posted at Cincinnati Blog.

After Ashley at Know Theatre of Cincinnati tonight. Also, Final Friday if you want to make a night of it.

The Fine Arts Fund announced their campaign total tonight at the Cincinnati Art Museum, $11.7+ million. Congratulations to the committee and staff for exceeding their goal!
Continue reading “Who the F*#K is the FAF?”

Saturday Night is Live Music Night at TheConveyor

The Enquirer is reporting that by the end of 2009 people could be living and working within the Banks development.  Who are those people that will be living there?  What will their demographic makeup?  Upper-class singles?  Upper-class empty nesters?  Middle class singles?  Families?  Many questions remain for the developers.  If other riverfront projects are indicators, the price will be driving who will be living there.  Who will be working there will hopefully be a much more economi
Continue reading “Who Will Live on The Banks?”

I actually went to a baseball game yesterday and thoroughly enjoyed myself, despite the loss of Reds. Baseballs games are a great way to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon as long as you don't take the game too seriously. It is April after all, so it doesn't really matter who wins, it matters only if you have fun. Walking around the park, talking with a friend, eating brats, and drinking beer make this an expensive version of a day at Oktoberfest.

Sitting in the outfield isn't bad, but you can't see the big screen scoreboard at all, thus making the cheers and jeers of the crowd totally incomprehensible. Being in the upper deck would have been worse, for the best food and beer selections are on the lower level. It was surprising to have a beer booth with a variety of beers. I had Hofbrauhaus brew and Stella Artois for the beers of the day. Fine brews on a warm, but pleasant day. Anything heavier would have been too much.

Ice cream made all the difference. Baseball is associated more with cotton candy and cracker jack as the sweet snacks, but Ice Cream is far better a treat.

There were a ton of kids there. I take that to be a weekend thing. If you go to a weekday night game I imagine you see fewer kids there while school is still in session. I surprisingly didn't sit near any screamers. A couple of kids where whining, but that goes with the territory when you don't get you have to eat all of your cheese coney before you get the Frosted Malt.

The game seemed to be the sideshow. Purists surely scorn at that. If I was with a group of baseball nuts, I likely would have had to sit in my seat the whole time, instead of just wondering around. The strolling is what made the day leisurely. That is what baseball is supposed to be, relaxing and calm. Save the intensity for the Bengals game. Give me a serene afternoon with nice conversation over a reserved game any day.

6:00PM – Met friends at Mahatma. The new location looks great but could maybe use better signage as I had to look relatively hard to find it. If I weren't looking, it would have been easy to blow right past. The store is about 3 times as large as the old location, but appears to hold about the same amount of inventory, just merchandised a little differently. The selection also appears to be slightly more upscale than before.

6:30PM – dinner at Jean Ro's Bistro. Entree: Swordfish w/vegetable frittata and spinach wrapped in fried potato strings. Mmmmm, fried potato strings. When I called for reservations on Thursday, they said 6:30 was the latest available. However, the restaurant was significantly less than 1/2 full at 7:30 this evening. The bar area held several people but it was by no means packed when we left around 8:30

8:30PM – Palomino's Hop Around was in the bar area only. Tried the chickpea fries. Interesting texture and large portion for $4.95. Not too many people in bar area.

9:45PM – Mr. Pitiful's was also less than busy. Good music, just not enough people listening to it.

10:15PM – CAC for Silk & Spice after party. Lots of people waiting for their cars at the valet stand when we arrived. Maybe 150 people inside, a few dancing, a few by the bar, most appeared to be people who attended the gala and very few were sporting glam rock attire. (Kudos to the guy in the sequin cape.) Some people may have glam rock confused with 80's. The party was isolated to the 1st floor… smart move to give the appearance of a packed house. Had a good time, ran into the usual suspects and was more than ready to go by 12:30AM.

Overall – Hop Around turnout didn't seem to be as large as in the past. Glam Rock is fun but also requires a lot of hair product.

Glam Rock at the CAC tonight after the Hop Around. Also, tonight is the grand opening of Mahatma in its new Main Street location. Stay tuned for details…

When someone visits, I’m always torn: How best to show them the city, without breaking the bank? Save your money for dinner and drinks- there are a number of things you can do for free throughout the city:

• The Cincinnati Art Museum is always free and always worth a visit. I went a few weeks ago and there was an installation involving 1000 or so light-up dildos. What’s not to like? 953 Eden Park Drive, Cincinnati 513 721-2787.
• The world's largest church stained glass window, sweeping murals and awe-inspiring carvings abound at the Covington Basilica Cathedral. Open daily from 10-4. 1140 Madison Avenue, Covington 859-431-2060 (Visit the Basilica site for details about mass times).
• The Clifton Gaslight district is always attractive to my visiting nieces and nephews. Browse import shops, wellness boutiques and clothing stores. Clifton.
• Hamilton county parks have an unlimited number of free events. Hike, take a class or visit art shows and photo exhibits. When the weather warms, free movie nights start at the parks- and there’s no better place for a picnic dinner after a busy day in the office.
• The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County has free classes ranging from ballroom dancing to yoga, guest speakers and clubs for readers, sewers and card players, too.
• Walk across the suspension bridge to stretch your legs, people watch and enjoy that eerie feeling of realizing you’re 100 feet above the Ohio River on a bridge that moves.
• Finally, Devou Park of Covington and Fountain Square downtown get a special mention here, because of the photo opportunities for out-of-towners.

I'll update this list when the weather gets warmer and the long list of free summer activities and events begins. If you have more ideas for things to do for free, let me know.