Cover Story
Artist proof
Last year, printmaker and print collector Adam Werth identified a Picasso lithograph from the “Portraits Imaginaires” portfolio at an estate sale in Pittsford. The print wasn’t getting much attention, and the people running the sale didn’t have any information, so Werth snapped a photo and went home to do some quick research. He rushed back…
Film Review: “Selma”
The time is right for a film like “Selma.” Though director Ava DuVernay’s focus is the riveting behind-the-scenes story of a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement — documenting Martin Luther King Jr.’s campaign to get the Voting Rights Act passed by staging marches from Selma, Alabama, to the state capitol in Montgomery –…
Week Ahead: Ginna deadline; arts meeting; fair housing forums
Thursday is the deadline for Rochester Gas and Electric and the owner of the Ginna nuclear plant to file an electricity purchase contract. RG&E and Ginna are negotiating an agreement for the utility to purchase electricity from the plant on an as-needed basis, but at prices likely above the market rate. In late November, the…
Film Review: “Inherent Vice”
If nothing else, “Inherent Vice” demonstrates how far the private eye movie, a classic American form, has traveled since the days of Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe. In the new film, the tough detective in search of a hidden truth — played most memorably by Humphrey Bogart and some worthy successors like Dick Powell, Robert…
Rochester’s big growth area: poverty
While unemployment is down both locally and nationally, the Dow is up, and the economy is clearly improving, Rochester is bucking the trends and sinking deeper into poverty. And the city’s children are suffering the most. Rochester now has the distinction of being the only one of similar-sized cities to have more than 50 percent…
Some City Council members want say in RHA appointments
Right now, the mayor of the City of Rochester appoints five of the seven members of the Rochester Housing Authority board. But some City Council members say that Council should have a role, too, says Council member Matt Haag. “We’d like to have some discussions with the mayor and with the Council president about future…
Report: substantial fossil fuel reserves must remain untapped to avoid worst of climate change
Countries worldwide have massive oil, natural gas, and coal reserves that they could tap. But much of those reserves must remain unused in order to keep global warming under 2 degrees through the end of the century — an important tipping point, according to scientists. A new study published in Nature breaks down the reserves…
FILM | “Heavy Metal”
As part of its Mondo Movie Series, The Little Theatre will host a screening of the 1981 animated fantasy hit “Heavy Metal.” Based loosely on the American magazine of the same name, “Heavy Metal” is the classic tale of Good versus Evil in a series of shorts spanning several times and worlds, each connected to…
THEATER | “Pippin”
Medieval history met jazz hands in “Pippin,” one of the longest-running Broadway musicals of the 1970’s. Its success was partly due to Stephen Schwartz’s tuneful score, but even more to Bob Fosse’s high-powered staging and choreography (and to one of the first TV commercials to promote a Broadway show). The story line deals with the growing-up of the young prince…
CLASSICAL | Concentus Women’s Chorus
If you can’t beat the winter cold, sing about it. That is the reasoning behind one of the first choral concerts of the new year, presented this weekend by Concentus Women’s Chorus. The program features what director Gwen Gassler describes as “seasonal choral music in a very broad sense.” It begins with the ancient chant…
ZYDECO | The Revelers
True to tradition, The Revelers — a Louisiana sextet made up of members from the Red Stick Ramblers and The Pine Leaf Boys — pepper blues, Swamp-pop, Cajun, and Zydeco throughout its music. A sonorous accordion croons in the forefront while clean guitars dance around cozy melodies. Half the songs adopt the Cajun French language,…
ROCK | Nerds in Denial
This local 4-piece rock troupe has a lot of gumption and youth. Barely out of high school, the members have been driving guitars and punchy lyrics since they got together in 2011. Drums are propulsive, guitars are heavy and the lyrics clamor for attention. The band’s irony, subversion, and drive are palpable. With so many…
School integration is more than enrichment
I am betting that most parents in the Spencerport school district would welcome participation in the Urban-Suburban program, despite the few voices of opposition. For 50 years, the program has opened the door for minority children from Rochester to attend school in one of seven participating suburban districts. (Spencerport would be the 8th if the…
ROCK | Pony Hand
Pony Hand is one of our city’s rarest gems. It is a raw, driving, psychedelic-garage-punk-folk treasure that elevates the body and flips the brain inside out. The riffs are sharp and angular, but with warm tone that oozes vintage 1970’s. Karrah Teague’s vocals are urgent, powerful, sexy, and full of smoke, with the band joining…
Feedback 1/7
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. Comments of fewer than 350 words have a greater chance of being published, and we do edit selections for publication in print. We don’t publish comments sent to other media. Politics and…
METAL | Mushroomhead
Short answer: Cleveland’s Mushroomhead is a metal band. But on upon closer inspection, the band is a culmination of all the cool aspects of hip-hop, industrial, and prog-rock all ensconced in bio-mechanical gore. The stage show is gloriously gory, awesome with the masked band cavorting around a set that resembles something out of Saw. Mushroomhead…
Bob Duffy dishes
Bob Duffy says he just wanted to come home. Rochester’s former mayor and New York’s former lieutenant governor is back in the Flower City, heading up the Rochester Business Alliance. Rumors of a rift with Governor Andrew Cuomo are off-target, Duffy says; he loved being New York’s No. 2. But Rochester beckoned. “I loved the…
RAGTIME/BLUES | Woody Pines
When I saw Woody Pines at Abilene during last year’s Jazz Fest, I remember remarking to myself or to the like-minded yahoos I was hanging out with that in spite of all the references to ragtime and old time boogie, the Pines’ drumless outfit — save for random visits to beat on the lone floor…
Finger Lakes’ fuel, tourism industries clash
Residents of the Finger Lakes are fiercely protective of the region’s land and waters. As a result, the area is known for open roads and farmland; thick forests and sprawling vineyards; fresh air and, of course, gleaming freshwater. Residents know full well that the 11 Finger Lakes are an asset that few places in the…
JAZZ | Andy Calabrese and Chet Catallo
Andy Calabrese has lent his keyboard prowess to a wide range of greats including Aretha Franklin, Russell Thompkins Jr., and Felix Cavaliere. Guitarist extraordinaire Chet Catallo was one of the original members of Spyro Gyra, contributing original tunes to the group’s early albums and livening up hits like “Shaker Song” and “Morning Dance.” When these…
Urban Action 1/7
This week’s calls to action include the following events and activities. (All are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted.) Fair housing forums The City of Rochester will hold two public forums on fair housing on Thursday, January 15. The first is from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., while the second is from…
Bob Bunce
Bob Bunce’s casual singing style belies the electricity coursing through the man and his music. Whether it’s the country blues, bossa nova, rock, or reggae, the bearded Bunce bounces boldly nonchalant and super-cool. His latest CD, “Rural Delivery,” is a fine collection of tunes full of wry humor and classic old-time boogie. And he’s a…
ROUND-UP: Lighter bites
After weeks of holiday feasting on cookies, cakes, eggnogs, and ham with all the trimmings, I like to reset my palate in the new year by eating lighter foods. That’s not code for dieting; it’s seeking out foods that are lighter in flavor, the way Swiss cheese is more delicate than Parmesan, or lighter in…
ALBUM REVIEW: “Beggar’s Flesh”
Goodbye Ronnie “Beggar’s Flesh” Self-released reverbnation.com/goodbyeronnie I suppose if Ronnie Lickers didn’t bang three albums out as quickly as he has, his head would explode like a piñata full of broken hearts and candy. It’s perhaps easier to look at his rapid three-CD output — culminating with his new “Beggar’s Flesh” — as more of…
Reserving judgment
When “Judgment at Nuremberg” opens this week at MuCCC, it will mark the last full production directed by Michael Arvé, a director and actor with a long history in Rochester community theater. Involved with theater since he was a high school student in Rochester, Arvé has taken part in a long list of plays —…
COMEDY | Talent
Appearing on a BET comedy special some years ago, comedian Talent gave his audience his one rule: Don’t take anything personal, it’s just comedy. Listening to the material for a few minutes will make you understand why people were warned. The beer-toting New Yorker lets his thoughts and observations spill out freely, and there is…
ART | “Arabat Spit / Healing Muds”
Born in a republic of the former USSR, young Ukrainian photographer Sergiy Lebedynskyy uses his perspective to explore the tension between cultural nostalgia and political shift. Lebedynskyy is a founding member of the Shilo photo group, known for its critical view on the social processes in the former-USSR. In his recent project, “Arabat Spit /…
KIDS | “Solo Circus”
This weekend, Theatre Young Kids Enjoy (TYKEs) presents Michael DuBois’ “Solo Circus” at the JCC. Described as a “fast-paced, comedy-variety show for all ages,” “Solo Circus” features magic, juggling, circus stunts, and plenty of audience interaction. DuBois, a Rochester native, has performed at over 500 colleges, cruise ships, theatres, and resorts around the world. For…
