Doing or undoing a slow burn
Amid snowy tree branches and slush-dappled parked cars, the aroma of wood smoke makes its way down many Rochester streets. Even if you don’t burn wood yourself, you get a taste of the season and all its associations — like that “chestnuts roasting on an open fire” thing. The romance invites itself into your…
Reader Feedback 12.4.02
Preventing the war, Cobbs Hill views, the US and violence
Automatic art
The Art-o-mat cometh. Yes, thanks to a collaboration between Rochester Contemporary and the Record Archive, our city finally gets to experience the joys of “vended art.” In 1997, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Clark Whittington invented the Art-o-mat by turning an abandoned cigarette vending machine to the service of art. Initially, it dispensed Whittington’s own…
A sparkling gift from Rochester artists
Snow was gathering outside Eastman Theatre and onstage as the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and Rochester City Ballet gave us an early Christmas gift last weekend. Saturday night, I saw another extraordinary performance of the Nutcracker ballet. It was rewarding to a degree far beyond any appreciation born of boosterism or local pride. I’ve said that…
ABBA cadabra
The only question about the touring blockbuster musical Mamma Mia! was whether it keeps up the phenomenal energy and high performance standards that have made its long runs in the world’s major theater centers so magical. And the answer is a resounding yes. Completing two-weeks at the Auditorium Theatre this Sunday, December 8, Mamma Mia! continues to…
Rejoicing in visibility
Artists affected by mental illness mount a high-profile exhibit
Houses in motion
Eight years ago, at the age of 18, Richie Salvaggio, a.k.a. DJ Richie Salvaggio, brought a brand new sound to Rochester: funky house. It happened in a building on Main Street his friends intended to turn into a record store (they never did). Salvaggio says it was his friend BK of the Brain Fruit…
Holy flaming cheese!
Mykonos owner Steffie Rizos and I went to high school together in Binghamton, where one of the most popular restaurants is the Argo, a Greek family joint specializing in seafood. Though Rochester has its share of “Greek” diners, as well as the wonderful Olive Tree, we didn’t have a restaurant like the Argo. Mykonos’s claim…
Deep ideas in Solaris’ ocean world
Editor’s note: Thanks to a holiday scheduling snafu, we here present another review of Solaris. Yes, this does mean the film is extra good. Some students of science fiction prefer to call the genre speculative fiction, an appropriate term for works that can encourage responses of a greater complexity than the entertainment and escapism…
Animation for adults
A must-see for Japanimaniacs, those interested in Japanese folklore, or anyone weary of the boring stories that typically accompany American animation, Miyazaki’s Spirited Away is a refreshing new take on Alice in Wonderland. The film, which destroyed box office records in Japan, knocking Titanic out of the top spot (which, in turn, had bested the…
Keeping his standards
Bill Dobbins brings his big band vision back to Eastman
The XX files
Roll call vs. booty call
News Briefs 12.4.02
Bridge to this century The US Army Corps of Engineers considers the Hojack Swing Bridge a “hazard to navigation” and wants it removed. But the bridge, which once carried trains across the Genesee River near Lake Ontario, has defenders who rightly view it as a work of art. On Wednesday, December 11, at 7…
