Cover Story
2014 Rochester Fringe Festival Preview
This year, the Rochester Fringe Festival will feature more than 380 shows, taking place Thursday, September 18, through Saturday, September 27, across 28 venues in and around downtown Rochester.
Charter parents sue New York State for more money
For years, charter school advocates have touted lower operating costs as one of charters’ chief benefits. But operating on fewer dollars has become a huge handicap, says a lawsuit filed yesterday by five families — one from Rochester and four from Buffalo — with children attending charter schools. The suit says that New York’s method…
Blackfriars Theatre appoints new artistic director
Blackfriars Theatre has named Danny Hoskins as the organization’s new Artistic and Managing Director, effective July 1, 2015, the theater announced today. Hoskins will take over for current director John Haldoupis after he retires following the 2014-15 season. Haldoupis has been with Blackfriars for 35 years. “It is with great pride and relief to have…
Film Reviews: “My Old Lady” and “The Hundred-Foot Journey”
“My Old Lady” (PG-13), Directed by Israel Horovitz Opens Friday at the Little Theatre and Pittsford Cinema Making his filmmaking debut at the age of 75, “My Old Lady” finds veteran playwright Israel Horovitz adapting from his own 2002 play. Kevin Kline plays Mathias (though he prefers to go by Jim), an uptight New Yorker…
WEEK AHEAD: Port designs, LGBT forum, county Dems to push for review of tax exemption, local climate march
Edgewater Resources will present its designs for the first phase of the redevelopment of the Port of Rochester at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, September 17, in the auditorium of Charlotte High School, 4115 Lake Avenue. Last April, the City of Rochester selected Edgewater to develop approximately three acres of public land next to Ontario Beach…
Film Review: “The Drop”
Aside from its value as a work in and of itself, “The Drop,” rather like another fine recent movie, “A Most Wanted Man,” constitutes a kind of mixed blessing. It presents audiences once again with the ambiguous, bittersweet gift of an opportunity to witness the last performance of a talented, accomplished performer, in this instance…
Edgewater to present designs for port development
The meeting is from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 17, at Charlotte High School, 4115 Lake Avenue.
Legislature Democrats target tax exemption
Democrats in the Monroe County Legislature say that they want a review of a state-authorized property tax exemption that benefits various businesses. The exemption doesn’t have a simple name, but is authorized through section 485-b of the state’s property tax laws. Any commercial, industrial, or retail business that invests a minimum of $10,000 into a…
Judy Collins coming to East House
During the 1960’s and ‘70’s, Judy Collins was a folk music goddess. Her soaring soprano lifted songs like Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” to the heavens. The recording, which appeared on her debut album, “A Maid of Constant Sorrow,” earned Collins her first Grammy Award. Collins’ seemingly free spirit was part of her appeal during…
FESTIVAL | Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival
Though in America it’s hard to tell, Celtic culture entails so much more than reveling drunkenly in the springtime drizzle. If you’re clueless about the Celts, now’s your chance to learn more. This weekend, the Niagara Celtic Heritage Society will host the 14th annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival and Highland Games, which features the traditions…
ROCKABILLY | Rosie Flores
Reigning rockabilly queen, filly, and diva Rosie Flores has been a constant on the scene for years. Yet the Austin-based singer/guitarist still plays with the joy of a 9 year old playing a chocolate guitar. Whereas, Flores voice is coquettish and sweet with just enough drawl and coo, her guitar playing is slick and mean.…
Parole under scrutiny
Two recent, violent incidents allegedly involving parolees have focused attention on the issue of former prisoners returning to Rochester’s streets. Michael Caruthers is accused of raping a teenage girl downtown last month, the day after he got out of prison. And Thomas Johnson III has been charged in the shooting death last week of Rochester…
SPECIAL EVENT | Greentopia Fall Festival
Greentopia’s Fall Festival will return for its fourth year, this weekend, though in a slightly different format from previous years. Rather than a week-long event, the Fall Festival will take place Friday, September 12, and Saturday, September 13, with the film festival portion moving to the spring (March 17-21, 2015). The Fall Festival takes place…
GARAGE ROCK | Harmonica Lewinski
It goes without saying that Harmonica Lewinski is a smirk personified. But its lo-fi, psychedelic, psycho-surf go-go is positively brilliant. It’s trashy in the spirit of, say, The Cramps, or The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, or Royal Trux. The reverb-drenched throb and drone is akin to the trippy side of garage rock. If this kind…
THEATER | “The Pillowman”
The Irish playwright Martin McDonagh has some challenging (and satisfying) work to his credit, including the stage plays “The Beauty Queen of Leenane” and “The Lieutenant of Inishmaan,” and the movies “In Bruges” and “Seven Psychopaths.” But his most profoundly disturbing work may be “The Pillowman.” Life imitates art imitating life in McDonagh’s twisty study…
FOLK | Turtle Hill Folk Festival
Autumn may be breathing down our necks, but there is still time to catch a summer music festival. Located on a campsite, The Turtle Hill Folk Festival brings in over a dozen musicians for hands-on activities including workshops. Six groups that are rooted in the folk genre anchor this event. Friday evening’s concert line-up features guitar-banjo duo…
An island of ancient faith in the inner city
Woodchucks munch the grass to one side of the Fifteenth Tabernacle on what’s left of Leopold Street in the City of Rochester — the street is part of a weird island of warehouses, apartments, and empty lots in the foreground of the city’s skyline. Leopold, near Ormond Street and Central Avenue in Northeast Rochester, has…
POP | BROODS
It has been a great year for New Zealand pop duo BROODS. The pair’s debut full-length album, “Evergreen,” released overseas in August, currently tops the charts in New Zealand and rides high in Australia. Lead singer Georgia Nott’s emotionally intricate melodies are accompanied by her older brother Caleb’s acoustic guitar or added onto thick layers of…
ROCK | The Black Keys
Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney pretty much broke through into super-band territory with the release of 2010’s “Brothers” and 2011’s “El Camino,” and their 2014 album, “Turn Blue,” may be The Black Keys’ biggest yet. The guitar and drums are mint as per usual, and the addition of heavy synthesizers in some songs are pulled…
FOOD | Festival of Food and Harvest Hootenanny
The harvest season is finally upon us. South Avenue, between Gregory Street and Averill Avenue will close on Saturday, September 13, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. for the Harvest Hootenanny. The harvest themed festival will be the focus of children’s activities like a candied apple workshop and corn-husk doll making, as well as carnival…
JAZZ | Sophie Dunér/Dominic Duval Duo
Swedish singer Sophie Dunér is a wonderfully uninhibited vocalist who can shake up a standard like “Caravan” or knock you out with a passionate original tune. Her emotionally gymnastic voice is most often accompanied by a string quartet, but when she visits the Bop Shop Monday she will be in a more intimate duo setting…
FOLK | Brennen Leigh and Noel McKay
Don’t be surprised to think Johnny and June when you listen to country-folk duo Brennen Leigh and Noel McKay. The pair manages to summon the sounds of older country with keeping a more modern subject matter — and it’s not the typical “my wife left me, my dog died” subject matter you’d hear in a…
THEATER | “Ordinary Days”
Adam Gwon’s 2007 musical “Ordinary Days” is a “New York show” for everybody. The cast consists of four characters — two couples — whose lives intertwine in a single day in New York City that turns out not to be so ordinary. Gwon’s celebration of everyday miracles and the search for meaning in one’s life…
NEW AGE | David Lanz
Most of pianist David Lanz’s compositions aren’t overly complicated, but each piece contains a vividly told story. The power and emotion in his playing are palpable, without being needlessly intricate or exaggerated, as his keystrokes paint a self-contained picture, often relaxing and reflective. Lanz, a Seattle-native who now resides in Pittsford, rose to prominence with…
Urban Action 9/10
This week’s calls to action include the following events and activities. (All are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted.) Greentopia is this week The Greentopia Festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, September 12, and Saturday, September 13. The event features music, art, design, performances, and educational…
Top cat on the bottom end
It’s not hard to spot Brian Williams. It’s hard to keep up with Williams, but not hard to find him at joint du jour, his arms around his big doghouse bass, with that big smile on his dial. Williams is everywhere, he’s the bass man of the Rochester scene, the go-to guy, the top cat…
Our job after the tragedy of Pierson and the Glazers
Inexplicable, devastating, tragic… pick your own adjective. All apply to the deaths last week of Rochester Police Officer Daryl Pierson and entrepreneurs Larry and Jane Glazer. The people most profoundly affected are their families and co-workers, and nothing anybody can say can ease their pain. But all three deaths will have a deep, long-lasting impact…
ALBUM REVIEW: “Pop Crimes”
Rowland S. Howard “Pop Crimes” Fat Possum Records Fatpossum.com Rowland S. Howard isn’t forgotten, it’s just that he never really made any pitches from the periphery where he resided after the morph of his band, Melbourne’s The Boys Next Door into The Birthday Party. On “Pop Crimes,” Howard’s uber-cool frosts the scene with his narcotic,…
Feedback 9/10
We welcome your comments. Send them to themail@rochester-citynews.com, or post them on our website, rochestercitynewspaper.com, our Facebook page, or our Twitter feed, @roccitynews. For our print edition, we select comments from all three sources; those of fewer than 350 words have a greater chance of being published, and we do edit selections for publication in…
ALBUM REVIEW: “The Miami Jazz Project”
The Miami Jazz Project “The Miami Jazz Project” ZOHO Records Arthurbarron.com Saxophonist/flautist Arthur Barron, soprano saxophonist Dave Liebman, and keyboardist Abel Pabon waste no time in declaring their distinctive sound on this self-titled album. The opening tune, John Coltrane’s fairly obscure “Dahomey Dance,” features eerie harmonies, and no shortage of melody-stretching solos. When the two…
Fast food fight for $15
As a manager in training at the Irondequoit Wendy’s, Kim Ramos makes $8 an hour, which is New York’s minimum wage. When she advances to manager, she’ll make around $9 or $10 an hour. But even then she says she’ll struggle to make ends meet. Ramos lives with her girlfriend, who has two children and…
“New Ghosts for a New Age: Yoshitoshi’s ‘New Forms of 36 Ghosts'”
When the long-isolated Japanese society was opened to the West in 1868, fundamental shifts in the social structure, politics, military, and economy transpired. Master woodcut artist Tsukioka Yoshitoshi was an eyewitness to the conflict and change, and while many artists of his day reflected these shifts, Yoshitoshi spent his final years immortalizing Japan’s history and…
2014 Fringe Festival: Headliners
Circus Orange Circus Orange’s “Tricycle” act is a true smorgasbord of a performance. Described as a “dramatic fusion of live music, clown, circus dance, aerial performance, mechanics, pyrotechnics and fire arts,” the show seems like something out of a Tim Burton flick. The performers walk through the crowd — so if you are scared of…
“Shirley Valentine”
Blackfriars Theatre is getting a slight jump on the fall theater season with its early-September production of “Shirley Valentine.” However, this production of Willy Russell’s endearing one-character play, anchored by a terrific performance, is not a theatrical hors d’oeuvre. It’s a modest, expertly prepared, and tasty meal. Susan Hopkins plays Shirley Bradshaw (née Shirley Valentine),…
2014 Fringe Festival: Impersonator-in-chief
Jay Pharoah Performing at the First Niagara Rochester Fringe Festival Saturday, September 20 Spiegeltent, 406 East Main Street 9:30 p.m. & 11:30 p.m. | $48 | Rochesterfringe.com; Jaypharoah.com The man at the microphone is unmistakable, speaking in clearly enunciated words with a clipped, precise delivery. President Obama is cool and collected no matter what crisis…
CHOW HOUND: Burgers and Suds
Few experiences in my life have been more distinctly American than sitting under a wall-sized portrait of the signing of the Declaration of Independence while chowing down on a burger and drinking a beer. The only thing missing was Lynyrd Skynyrd playing over the speakers. American Burger Bar and Beer Boutique (3208 Latta Road, Greece)…
2014 Fringe Festival: Critic Picks
City’s arts and entertainment writers sound off on their most-anticipated shows at Fringe 2014
FITNESS | East End Fitness Festival
On Saturday, September 13, Fitness Edge Radio will host the first East End Fitness Festival, a daylong expo of health featuring more than 40 local fitness related businesses, live music, and an assortment of food options. The event will take place in the parking lot on East Avenue between Mathews and Scio Streets, from 9…
BROADWAY | Broadway’s Golden Age and Beyond
Ward Stare’s been getting most of the RPO-related media love lately, but we’re happy to offer some to the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra’s multitalented Jeff Tyzik. He starts the RPO Pops season this weekend by conducting that pops-concert programming staple, the salute to Broadway — here called “Broadway’s Golden Age and Beyond.” The program ranges from…
LIT/ART | Mo’ Joe poetry reading and Randy Dunham Art
Explore locally-focused and multi-disciplinary creativity this weekend. On Saturday, September 13, book shop Before Your Quiet Eyes (439 Monroe Avenue), will host an art reception as well as a poetry reading. Approximately 25 poets will be present to read their work from the Mo’ Joe: An Anthology book, edited by John Roche. More than 100…
SINGER-SONGWRITER | Jon Lewis
Jon Lewis has tapped into something really great on “In Disguise,” his new album: a real emotional connection and sincerity. A singer-songwriter, Lewis doesn’t hide behind his guitar, but seems to be having a genuine conversation with the listener — there’s a lot of his own soul pumped into the music. Lewis and his band…
