Archive: June, 2010

JUST DO IT: Pennsylvania Ballet's Romeo & Juliet

POSTED: Thursday, June 3, 2010, 6:11 PM

Filed Under: Just Do It

Photo | Paul Kolnik

Shakespeare's classic tale just can't get any more romantic than this: Pennsylvania Ballet is performing Romeo & Juliet this weekend, accompanied by stirring music and compelling performances by dancers with plenty of chemistry. Set to Sergei Prokofiev's famous score, choreographer John Cranko explores new dimensions of the well-known tragedy through the agility and tenderness of an accomplished ensemble. For added "aw," a husband-and-wife dancing duo (PA Ballet principals Zachary Hench and Julie Diana) are playing the star-crossed title characters. Performances begin Fri., June 4, at the Academy of Music and run for only a week (pick up next week's City Paper to read Janet Anderson's review), so grab your tickets quick, and your tissues quicker, before this ephemeral production vanishes. Romeo & Juliet, June 4-12, $24-$129, Academy of Music, Broad and Locust streets, 215-893-1999, paballet.org.

Posted by Emily Currier @ 6:11 PM Permalink | Post a comment

IN MEMORIAM: Rue McClanahan

POSTED: Thursday, June 3, 2010, 5:36 PM

Filed Under: TV

Super sad to say that Rue McClanahan, aka The Golden Girls' Blanche Devereaux, passed away yesterday after suffering a stroke. While 2010 has been the Year of Betty White, I alway appreciated the Southern fried Blanche. Not only was she a woman in control of her sexuality, but she was an older woman in control of her sexuality. (Actually, McClanahan was set to play White's naive Rose, and vice versa but the ladies switched at a table read because of McClanahan's prior performance as the Rose-like Vivian on Maude and White's turn as the spicy Sue Ann on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.) Blanche was the catty one, the slutty one, the Samantha (sans the gag inducement). McClahanan imbued Blanche with a mean streak that made her insanely likable, embodying "If you don't have anything nice to say, come sit by me" ideal. But McClahanan also gave Blanche a certain degree of vulnerability that softened her edges, making her palatable. She will be missed. So now that Betty White is the last Girl standing, does that make her the Highlander?

Lindsey

Posted 2010-06-03 17:39:06

OMG! BETTY WHITE IS TOTALLY THE HIGHLANDER!!!!! THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!

Drew Lazor

Posted 2010-06-03 21:51:44

It's so true.

Posted by Molly Eichel @ 5:36 PM Permalink | Post a comment

QFest comes out!: Will honor Kelly McGillis and add non-homo horror element

POSTED: Thursday, June 3, 2010, 4:32 PM

Filed Under: Movies Film Fest

Aaron Tveit as Peter Orlovsky and James Franco as Allen in Ginsberg in Howl, which plays this year's QFest.

QFest, Philly's fave LGBTQ-themed film gathering, marks its sweet 16 by keeping the fest lean and mean, while tweaking the formula along the way. Last year was all about Big Changes for Qfest (including a new moniker and the addition of programmer Carol Coombs), but fest mounters, the Philadelphia Cinema Alliance, continue to shake things up with the announcement of a Danger After Dark program — featuring nine horror films that are no more LGBTQ than any other frightening flick, programmed by Travis Crawford (Disclosure: Crawford has written for City Paper). DAD highlights include Dogtooth, a Greek film about cloistered adult-children, which Sam Adams raved about at the 2009 Toronto International Film Fest. (All accounts say this movie is fabulous, but I'm way more excited about something called Big Tits Zombie 3D. For serious, how can you not be?!) In business as usual, the big honoree this year is Kelly McGillis, which I'm pumped about mainly because I've seen the kinda-local Witness an inordinate amount of times (30th Street Station, what what!), not to mention Top Gun. A featured theme this year is the Beat Generation, centered around a screening of Sundance flick Howl, about the 1957 obscenity trial concerning the titular epic poem, with James Franco as Allen Ginsberg. In addition, Qfest has scored nine world premieres, and the East Coast premiere of man-about-town Butch Cordora's doc, Straight and Butch, about his much-ballyhooed calendar. Unlike last year, the amount of repertory films is severely cut, with only a Barbra-palooza night as a tribute to Queen of the Gays Barbra Streisand, including a screening of Funny Girl and an appearance by the world's foremost Babs-impersonator.

Posted by Molly Eichel @ 4:32 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Why won't Philly.com run an ad for pedo-play Love Jerry? -- UPDATED

POSTED: Thursday, June 3, 2010, 3:23 PM

Filed Under: Arts Theater

UPDATE: The Inquirer's Michael Klein reports that Philly.com offered other solutions instead of the video, but Love Jerry got enough free publicity from Nice People-gate that the theater company declined further advertisements. Now, can we do something about the constant boob-assault The subject of Nice People Theatre's new play, Love Jerry, is anything but. The title character is a pedophile and the play deals with the ramifications of Jerry's evil proclivities on his relationship with his brother. While the play is meant to further discussion, Philly.com — the site for the Inquirer and Daily News — refuses to run an ad because it mentions the P-word. You can see the offending ad here. While media outlets have a right to pick and choose which ads they run, I don't understand why a video featuring an unassuming guy (who is secretly a major creep) is such a huge problem, especially considering every time I log into Philly.com, I'm assaulted with galleries of Hugh Hefner's former squeeze/Hank Baskett III's baby mama Kendra Wilkinson and various other huge-boobed ladies. So, titties are okay but a simple word is not? Either way, I'm sure Nice People is getting a nice little publicity push from this. Here's what Mark Cofta had to say about Love Jerry in this week's issue:

Nice People Theatre Co.'s Nicole Blicher and Miriam White have successfully discovered — and lovingly produced — quirky, obscure works like the Edinburgh Fringe Festival hit Have a Nice Life and last fall's soaring Grace, or the Art of Climbing. They go out on a limb once again with Megan Gogerty's musical Love Jerry, about a family coping with the long-term effects of child abuse. Jerry is a pedophile, that much we know; but can his family find a way to love him anyway? The Child Abuse Prevention Effort (CAPE) will lead audience discussions on June 5 and 11, so the conversation won't die out when the lights go up.

God, the participation of CAPE is just the cherry on top.

Through June 20, $10-$35, Latvian Society, 531 N. Seventh St., 267-909-3309, nicepeopletheatre.org

Mark Cofta

Posted 2010-06-04 14:24:43

Some observations about this latest absurdity of political correctness: 

1. Philly.com chose to forego $800 from Nice People for the ad. This seems like a lot to pay, and a lot for a recently bankrupt, just-auctioned company to refuse. Good news, though: if the controversy sells enough tickets (and it's probably better advertising than any ad could be), Nice People will donate that $800 to CAPE, a much better use of that cash than funding a narrow-minded web publication. 

2. This failure to examine simple context -- like every backfiring zero-tolerance school policy that's punished a school kid for using a plastic butter knife or a children's aspirin -- seems epidemic in our society. How will we ever solve the problem like pedophilia if we start by banning every mention of it? Let alone reaching the more mature level of considering that, yes, a pedophile is still an actual person with rights. 

3. See this show! I'm going tomorrow night (Saturday) and expect another smart, daring production from Nice People. This controversy, as silly as it is, might attract the attention this little theater company deserves.

Nicole

Posted 2010-06-05 01:59:32

Oh Mark, if only there were more of you around! You are the best! :)

Posted by Molly Eichel @ 3:23 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Wanna see Ted Passon's Zoe Strauss doc and Iron Man 2?

POSTED: Wednesday, June 2, 2010, 9:23 PM

Filed Under: Movies screening

So Ford Fiesta apparently gave Ted Passon — remember the guy who wanted you to pay for his car after the Phils won the Series? — a little mountain of money to make a video. He decided to focus on Philly photog goddess Zoe Strauss. You can catch Ted's short tomorrow at the UA Riverview (1400 S. Columbus Boulevard) accompanied by a free screening of Iron Man 2. All you gotta do is RSVP here. So yeah, it's Fiesta-related, so it's just a glorified ad but Passon + Strauss can't be that bad. I'm sure you'll just have to sit through a couple of commercials for some shitty car first. Here's the real deal though: You have to show up early. They let a lot of people RSVP, but it's a whole first come, first serve basis thing. So if you RSVP, don't dawdle because people tend to go through a lot just to get something for free

Thu., June 3, 7:30 p.m., free, UA Riverview, 1400 S. Columbus Blvd.

Posted by Molly Eichel @ 9:23 PM Permalink | Post a comment

NOW SEE THIS: Conan O'Brien, Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart have a dance-off

POSTED: Wednesday, June 2, 2010, 8:49 PM

Filed Under: Comedy | Now See This Stand-up

Yeah, you read that headline right. I especially enjoy the song choice. Maybe we can expect a visit when Conan and supposedly fantastic opener Reggie Watts come to town next week.

PopWatch has the full play-by-play

Conan O'Brien, Mon., June 7, 8 p.m., $39.50-$79.50, w/ Reggie Watts, Tower Theater, 19 S. 69th St., Upper Darby, 610-352-2887.

Posted by Molly Eichel @ 8:49 PM Permalink | Post a comment

MUSIC MADNESS: Win tickets to see Erykah Badu! -- WE HAVE A WINNER!

POSTED: Wednesday, June 2, 2010, 7:09 PM

Filed Under: Music

You wanna go see soul goddess Erykah Badu when she hits the Tower Theatre on June 8? Well, we want you to go too (especially because our new musician crush, Janelle Monae is opening. She's incredible live, trust us)! We've got two tickets that could be yours. But first, here's what K. Ross Hoffman had to say about Badu's song "Turn Me Away (Don't Tell Mummy)":

If the raw, knotty New Amerykah: Part One found Mama Erykah refracting the agitated/agitative polit-funk murk of There's A Riot-era Sly Stone, the less-crazy, more-lazy, just-as-hazy Part Two (Motown) glows with a grinning Stevie-esque wonder and warmth, riffing blithely in the key of Life, no transpositions needed. While her crack team of funkateers (?uestlove on handclaps) lays down a dutifully breezy replication of Sylvia Striplin's 1981 groover "You Can't Turn Me Away," Badu — who plays Tower Theater June 8 — floats freely between that song's sweetie-pie sincerity and the crass cash-lust of the 1996 Junior M.A.F.I.A. smash ("Get Money") that sampled it, tweaking the juxtaposition into a dumb/funny gold-digging satire, delivered in a half-bored robo-drawl, which feels about as thought-out as the mock studio chatter that bookends the track, but still ekes by with the unsnarkable charm of lines like "I'll cook like your mother."

To go see Ms. Badu, all you have to do is answer this trivia question by e-mailing molly [dot] eichel [at] citypaper [dot] net: Congrats Marc!

Badu was recently charged with disorderly conduct for stripping off all her clothes at what American landmark? Why did Badu get naked?

Dealey Plaza (where JFK was assassinated), for her video "Window Seat"

RELATED>> Review of Erykah Badu's New AmErykah Part II: Return of the Ankh

Erykah Badu, Tue., June 8, 8 p.m., $40.50-$76, w/Bilal and Janelle Monae, Tower Theatre, 19 S. 69th St., Upper Darby, 610-352-2887.

Posted by Molly Eichel @ 7:09 PM Permalink | Post a comment

THE SHOWDOWN: So infectious you might want to get tested

POSTED: Wednesday, June 2, 2010, 12:20 AM

Filed Under: Music The Showdown

A concert a day keeps the doctor away.

Tuesday: Tokyo band Mono are intense. They lure you in with their skilled guitar work, then build level on top of level. Suddenly you realize that eight minutes have passed and you couldn't pull your ears way from the epic sound. With Twilight Sad, 8 p.m., $13, First Unitarian Church, 2125 Chestnut St., 215-563-3980. Wednesday: Girl-fronted Lemuria sound a lot like Rainer Maria: frustrated lady vocals way serious but ridiculously fun guitars and drums. Fun power-pop about the trials and tribulations of being twentysomething. With Amateur Party and The Great Explainer, 6 p.m., $8, Barbary, 951 Frankford Ave., 215-423-8342. Thursday: The Aviation Orange are getting crazy hype right now, so it would be an ideal time to check out these cute little smarties. They rock some '80s synths, but they infuse them with modern indie guitars and girl-boy vocals, an explosive combo. With Hellican and Voletta, 9 p.m., $8, The M Room, 15 W. Girard Ave., 215-739-5577. Friday: Rather than cover one band, the Legwarmers chose to cover an entire decade. They bring back the '80s with hits from Duran Duran, Journey, Billy Idol, and she bopper Cyndi Lauper. This may cause spastic dancing and inexplicable giddiness. You've been warned. At 9 p.m., $12, The Troc, 1003 Arch St., 215-922-5483. Saturday: Who doesn't want to go to the Roots Picnic? Fools, that's who. Throw your W's up with Ghostface Killah, Method Man and Raekwon. Be sure to also catch Tune-Yards, the wonderfully weird one-woman-and-her-uke lo-fi. Oh, and some Vampire Weekend somebody-or-other is going to be there, too. With The Roots, Mayer Hawthorne and the Country, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Pattern Is Movement & Clipse, 2 p.m., $66, Penn's Landing Festival Pier, Columbus Blvd. & Spring Garden St., 215-629-3200. Sunday: I'm not typically one for scream-o, but with Cannons, it's just so infectious, you might want to get tested. There's authenticity in their wild drums and desperate lyrics. This isn't your little sister's scream-o. With Mirador, Pet Primitive, and Northern Valentine, 8 p.m., $8, The M Room, 15 W. Girard Ave., 215-739-5577.

Posted by Julia West @ 12:20 AM Permalink | Post a comment

THE CURATOR: Beer goggles, Muppet Babies and old schoolin' it

POSTED: Tuesday, June 1, 2010, 11:31 PM

space1026.com

Andrew Jeffrey Wright

— There's more to Philly Beer Week than just guzzling down buttloads of brew. Uwishunu reports Hudson Beach Glass is again offering its St. Pat's special pint-glass workshop in honor of the fest. Crafters can also take their favorite ... this one's the hops. — I will admit that I desperately miss the Will Smith of pre-scientology. I miss my Fresh Prince of freakin' Bel Air. But there's something so refreshingly old skool about Philly's Writtenhouse that they may be able to fill his void. PW's Make Major Move's has got a new track from the group. Che-che-check it out. — Store 1026 is releasing five new Andrew Jeffrey Wright prints. Over at Print Liberation, Katie Miller gets inside the mind behind the "Walking Leg Dog" (which does, totally, work). — By now you know that I have an affinity for muppets, and you may have also picked up on my appreciation for the Phils. Leave it to ZooWithRoy to totally make my day when I found this post entitled, "Phillies as Muppet Babies: The Definitive Guide." Chase is Kermit and commenters think Ryan Howard is a shoe-in for Miss Piggy.

Posted by Kristen Humbert @ 11:31 PM Permalink | Post a comment

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CONCERT REVIEW: The Rolling Stones @ Wells Fargo Center 6/18 || Ian McLagan @ Tin Angel 6/17
What we're trying to do this weekend
CONCERT REVIEW: The Postal Service @ The Mann 6/17
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: Sunny, Tony and the return of Do No Harm
NOW SEE THIS: Salinger film trailer
Behind the scenes of local film A Man Full of Trouble
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: Indian fare rules, Dunder Mifflin lives on, Tom Jones is a god
REVIEW: Archer Live! @ the TLA 1/11
CITY PAPER WRITING CONTEST 2013: Send stories! Send poetry!
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: Pink. Diner en Blanc 2. Breaking Glass and Milkboy at the movies. And so on.

About this blog

Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

Follow Critical Mass editors Patrick Rapa and Emily Guendelsberger on Twitter:

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