Rochester can be easy to overlook if you consider only the broad strokes. It’s a home to once-major businesses that have seen better days. For the past decade-plus, the city itself has experienced a slow but steady drop in population. And there are times of the year when it’s buried under inches of snow, sometimes […]
Eric Rezsnyak
Posted inArts & Entertainment
THEATER: “The Wild Party”
In 1928, Joseph Moncure March wrote an epic narrative poem titled "The Wild Party." Set in the Roaring 20’s, it told the story of entertainers Queenie and Burrs, their tempestuous relationship, and a raucous soiree in which it all went to hell. In 2000, two entirely different musicals called "The Wild Party," both based on […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Theater: “Bad Dates”
"Bad Dates" – currently in its final week – is something of a departure for Geva. It’s a small, cutesy, one-woman show that would seem too intimate for the theater’s main stage. But a big set and a bigger performance do a good job filling the space. Unfortunately, they outshine the play itself, a bizarre […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
REVIEW: RBTL’s “Avenue Q”
So: awesome. Awesome, awesome, awesome. There is literally nothing bad I can write about Rochester Broadway Theatre League’s touring production of "Avenue Q." No sound problems. No weak actors. No crappy sets. Nothing. The play is great, the singing was great, the production was slick – it’s a critic’s worst nightmare. "Avenue Q" was the […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
THEATER: “Misery”
Full disclosure: I have never read Stephen King’s "Misery," nor have I seen the film version of it. But I’m familiar with the story, and was excited to hear that Blackfriars would be producing the stage adaptation for its current season. It’s a work custom-made for the theater – two meaty characters, basically one setting, […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
THEATER: “Frozen”
In honor of its 35th year, Geva Theatre tried something different. In lieu of its usual Nextstage season, it partnered with the Community Foundation for the Rochester TheatreFest. Over the course of its season, TheatreFest is bringing in 14 other local theater groups to use Geva’s smaller, secondary stage to highlight the area’s diverse theater […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
THEATER: “This Is Our Youth”
Kenneth Lonergan’s "This Is Our Youth" is an appropriate choice for the first theatrical project produced by new local art performance troupe Method Machine. The play has become one of the go-to scripts for Gen X/Y actors looking to establish some cred. (Young Hollywood luminaries Matt Damon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Casey Affleck, Hayden Christensen, Anna Paquin, […]
Posted inSpecial Sections
BEST OF ROCHESTER ’07: Introduction
Here she is, Miss Best of Rochester 2007! Such style. Such wisdom. Such grace. We speak of our readers, of course, specifically the hundreds of you that participated in our annual Best of Rochester survey. You aced the interview portion, giving us definitive answers to what people, places, and things make Rochester special. From Food […]
Posted inSpecial Sections
ANNUAL MANUAL ’07: Introduction
I moved to Rochester one year ago today. I realized this as I sat down to explain why greater Rochester is a great place to live in or visit. To be honest, it seems like more than a year — but that’s a good thing. It seems impossible that in only 365 days I’ve […]
Posted inSpecial Sections
ANNUAL MANUAL ’07: Cheap entertainment
It’s impossible to put a price on the benefits of art and culture. Except when you’re, like, broke. While it would be swell to pick up a fabulous piece of art from a chic gallery, dart to a nice evening show at the theater, and follow it up with a rock concert, for most of […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The legend of “The Legend of Zelda”
A look back at the swords ‘n’ sorcery gaming series
