Chalk

How fun is Chalk? Very. The menu is kitschy with entrees like, Cow #1 & Cow #2.

The atmosphere is intimate enough for a date but loud enough for girls night. There’s a little space in the back that could be a courtyard but didn’t have tables.

The service was great. I had steak fries, goat cheese salad & snap peas. The steak fries were skinny, not the conventionally thick wedges you might imagine. The goat cheese salad was delicious and had a lovely presentation.

Reason to return: I wanted to try the flight of cupcakes dessert but we were pressed for time.

Jerry Springer the Opera (not a review)

Jerry Springer the Opera was a little longer than expected. Not knowing why the protesters were protesting, I was curious.

After seeing it, I’m still not exactly sure why they were protesting, it could have been one of several things or maybe a combination.

The tap dancing KKK was my favorite part. Once I got over the “cleverness” of setting the word fuck to music I was ready to get into the story. The whole show was high-energy and fun. The cast was huge and kudos to New Stage for the sound management.

Bonus: New Stage has a bar downstairs, accessible during intermission.

Great American Trailer Park Musical – not a review

(This is not a review b/c I am not a critic.) I was fortunate enough to get a ticket to last night’s sold out performance of the Great American Trailer Park Musical.

The set & costumes were great. Over stimulating at times but in a good way. I swear, my aunt had an owl latch hook rug like the one in Jeanie & Norbert’s trailer.

It’s definitely a show I could see twice, which is probably why the extended run has sold out and there’s rumor of adding a second extended run.

The song lyrics are great, a near-constant string of 1-liners. Betty is my favorite character (played by Deb G. Girdler) When you see her in the song, Storm’s-A-Brewin’ you’ll know why.

Vine Street Kroger

Yesterday’s trip to the Vine Street Kroger was great. They have everything a small downtown grocery store should. Of course, there’s not as much variety on the higher-end organic/specialty items but it’s set for the basics.

As you enter, a sign tells you that outside bags are not allowed but I stopped at the customer service counter and my cloth shopping bags were approved.

Brunch

Lavomatic Brunch is the perfect way to start your Sunday. I highly recommend the shrimp & grits. Don’t be put off by the mention of porkbelly in the description. It’s subtle. The omlette du jour was great today. And the special, pulled pork on griddle cakes smelled amazing.

The staff goes out of their way to be accommodating bringing extra ice for tea and extra baguette for toast. It was easy to get a table the past two weekends. I’m hoping this becomes a habit.

Ice Cream, Puppies, Jewelry

Second Sunday on Main has something for everyone as evidenced by the directional sign for Ice Cream, Puppies & Jewelry. In my humble opinion as a marketer, the only way that sign could have been better is if it said: Ice Cream, Puppies, Jewelry, Beer.

Cyclones win Kelly Cup

Last night the Cyclones beat the Las Vegas Wranglers to win the Kelly Cup in the 6th game of the series. Tickets were just $10, probably the best sports ticket bargain ever!
The attendance was 12,722 and US Bank Arena didn’t seem prepared to handle the crowd. Beer, pizza, pretzel & peanut shortages indicated concession management grossly underestimated demand. (Seriously, peanuts?!? Those can be stored for a while, there’s no excuse to run out! Sorry, but I get cranky when I’m hungry.)
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“Don’t Make Me Pull This Show Over” is sweet and touching.

Let’s get a few things straight before I go any further. Number one, if you want to see this show, call now to reserve tickets. No, seriously-right now. Opening night was sold out and then some. If you do not heed this advice, you will miss this show. And that’s a shame.

Number two. Dress in layers. With the air on, Know Theatre’s performance space is an icebox. The woman next to me had on a parka. But when the A/C kicks off, you will want to remove something (but keep it clean, people). Moving on.

Continue reading ““Don’t Make Me Pull This Show Over” is sweet and touching.”

Fricative

What happens when you add a May Festival mystique to a Fringe show?

Performance Gallery has created a Sound Poetry piece put forth in the form of a classical musical concert complete with music stands and formal black and white attire. The performance consists of four works where each work has a short interlude with the audience applauding as if the CSO had just finished all of Stravinsky’s Right of Spring. It came across as a subtle homage to a Music Hall concert change in between musical pieces when the orchestra is reconfigured for the next work, where the music stands need to be in certain places to make sure the 1st Cello isn’t upstaged the 2nd Cello.

Sound Poetry is a tough thing to try and describe. It has non-words put together phonically that make for a nonsensically meaningful verbal structure. For the smart people out there, nae me, we are talking about an art form that in part stems from Dadaism, so yea you need to know that going in. Clearly this is not for those who don’t venture anything past the Broadway Series, but neither is anything else at Fringe.

The final of the four pieces was the most interesting because it put one of the eight cast/musicians/poets in the place of conductor. I would have liked this format used for more than just the final portion, since it gave the most and only other visual movement to the entire, except the hilarious opening warm up portion, including a processional onto the stage. If you want an experience that goes beyond the narrative, then Fricative is a best bet for the 2008 Fringe.