Cover Story
It’s time for Medicare for All
Believe it or not, says economist Robert H. Frank, President Trump and congressional Republicans, while flailing and failing in their efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, are actually proposing health care benefits that can best be delivered with a single payer, “Medicare for All” plan. They have good reasons to support single…
The State of Our County: divided and complacent
Dinolfo’s State of the County was mostly cheery, boosterish talk, a description of a happy, successful place. But below that surface is a harsh reality.
Comedian John Mulaney to headline Fringe
The KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival has had a real knack for grabbing top-tier, left-of-center comedians as headliners. Fringe organizers on Tuesday announced John Mulaney will perform Friday, September 22, in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. Mulaney will be coming through Rochester on his Kid Gorgeous tour, which has already sold out most of its summer…
The week ahead: Republicans and Democrats pick their candidates
The Monroe County Republican Committee will hold its nominating convention at 5:30 p.m. today at the Radisson Rochester Riverside, 120 East Main Street. And the Monroe County Democratic Committee will hold its designating convention at 6 p.m. Thursday at the downtown Holiday Inn, 70 State Street. Republicans will likely nominate Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn to run…
Film recap: The 2017 Nitrate Picture Show
The George Eastman Museum last weekend hosted the third Nitrate Picture Show, its annual “festival of film preservation” paying tribute to the medium’s notoriously combustible early format. The weekend’s events included tours of the Eastman Museum’s vaults and projection booths, lectures from film scholars Hisashi Okajima and Alexander Horwath, workshops, and demonstrations, all centered on…
City school budget nears $900 million; board approves SUNY Geneseo takeover of School 19
The Rochester school board has approved an $883 million budget for the 2017-2018 school year and a partnership agreement with SUNY Geneseo to manage School 19. All board members voted in favor of both initiatives at a special meeting last night. But some members were critical of the budget and the relationship with the college.…
Classical review: Fabien Gabel conducts the RPO
Popular guest conductor Fabien Gabel joined the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in a return to Kodak Hall on Thursday for a program that truly was a tale of two halves, featuring startlingly contrasting moods. It can be argued that the evening’s first piece, Bernard Herrmann’s suite from the film “Vertigo,” was its best: Gabel’s conducting was…
Film review: ‘The Void’
The founders of Canadian genre-film collective Astron-6,Jeremy Gillespie and Steven Kostanski, turn their eyes to the realm of Lovecraftian horror with “The Void.” And while the directing duo load their film up with enough monsters and mutilation to populate an otherworldly hell dimension, their efforts are nearly undone by an undercooked story and muddled plotting.…
Dinolfo sums up her accomplishments, agenda
Monroe County’s chief economic development agency is losing its association with lunch and getting a name that’s more of an inspirational and aspirational call. The subject at hand is the Monroe County Industrial Development Agency, which everyone calls COMIDA, literally the Spanish word for food; the progressive group Metro Justice once issued a critical report…
Party in the Park 2017 lineup announced
For nine Thursdays, starting June 15, a joyful noise will come from downtown once again. The City of Rochester today announced the lineup for its 2017 Party in the Park series in Martin Luther King Jr. Park (353 Court Street). There are a few to get excited about, and there’s a few to yawn at.…
Willie Nile is a true believer
Willie Nile is the walking example of pure rock ‘n’ roll. Black clad and cocksure, the man defines cool. But the New York City musician ain’t cliché: he’s classic. Playing with a fist in the air and a blast of exuberant rebellion. But Nile knows that even though it’s all about the big beat, rock…
Company appears to halt Seneca Lake gas storage project
Crestwood Partners says it won’t be able to complete a natural gas storage project on the shores of Seneca Lake, accord to Gas Free Seneca, the local organization fighting the plan. The group cites a Crestwood report filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; the document is a bi-weekly environmental compliance report. The company says…
Bike sharing heads toward a summer start
It’s been a few months since Rochester officials announced they’d picked Massachusetts-based Zagster to set up and run a bike-share program in the city. The announcement was a big deal, and it was met with enthusiasm from plenty of cycling enthusiasts, urbanist types, downtown boosters, and regular folks. The public has been waiting for news…
SPECIAL EVENT | Greater Rochester Teen Book Festival
Teens will get their chance to sift through best-selling young adult genre selections and meet award-winning authors during the Greater Rochester Teen Book Festival. The festival includes author presentations and opportunities to shop the available titles, get books signed, and connect with other readers over a mutual love of literature. This year’s featured authors include…
ART | “How Did We Get Here?”
Loud Cow, a new Spencerport art spaces, is hosting “How Did We Get Here,” the first in its Exhibition Series. The show features local artists Clifford Wun, Dara Engler, Debra Fisher, Evelyne Leblanc-Roberge, and Megan Armstrong. The pieces exhibited “look at spaces found in the inner worlds of the mental and physical as well as…
The Tip Jar
Once springtime hits, the Chow Hound tip jar overfloweth, so it’s time to make some room in there for the rest of the season. Whether you’re looking for somewhere to take mom for Mother’s Day or just want to fill up the weekend calendar, we’ve got you covered. New York Wine and Culinary Center’s Upstairs…
R&B | Rochester R&B Festival
Keith Sweat, K-Ci & JoJo, Ginuwine, and 112 have been household names in R&B since the mid-90’s. Each musician and group has been a hit-maker, chart-topper, and award winner (plus K-Ci & JoJo, Ginuwine, and 112 have been nominated for Grammys). The four acts will perform as part of the Rochester R&B Festival, which should…
THEATER | “Den Mother”
Betty Parsons (1900-1982) was at the center of the mid-century American art world — as a painter and sculptor, but also as a New York City gallery owner. Her encouragement of such artists as Rauschenberg, Pollock, Rothko, and Saul Steinberg led her to be called “the den mother of Abstract Expressionism.” The elements of Parsons’…
CLASSICAL | “American Voices”
The Rochester Oratorio Society, directed by Eric Townell, ends its 71st season on Friday with a concert of choral music written entirely by Americans. “American Voices” will feature “Four Motets” by the quintessential American composer Aaron Copland. Other notable composers on the bill include Amy Beach (“Credo” from Mass in E-flat with soprano soloist Elena…
THEATER | Acting Irish Theater Festival
Rochester this weekend will host the 24th Annual Acting Irish International Theatre Festival at Geva Theatre’s Fielding Stage (75 Woodbury Boulevard). The festival, which brings together members of Irish theater companies from the United States and Canada, is sponsored by The Irish Players of Rochester, a program of the Rochester Community Players. Our Irish Players…
ROCK | “Are You Experienced?” Celebration
Although there was a general mindset to blow doors off of rock music in the late 1960’s, it was Jimi Hendrix’s “Are You Experienced?” in May 1967 that really turned things upside down. In his short career, Hendrix was considered by many the greatest guitar player ever — and we can only speculate and dream…
ART | “Reflections on Place & Culture”
A new video installation on view at The Memorial Art Gallery (500 University Avenue), “Reflections on Place & Culture: Downey, Gower, Kluge,” features three short art videos that tackle the genre of documentary film and video through traditional and novel ways. Included in the exhibit are Juan Downey’s 1990 “Hard Times and Culture: Part One,…
ROCK ‘N’ ROLL | Willie Nile
Enduring rocker Willie Nile is the walking example of pure rock ‘n’ roll. Black clad and cocksure, the man defines cool. But this New York City musician ain’t cliché; he’s classic. Since the early 1980’s, Nile has been churning out greasy denim and leather, three on the tree anthems that resonate all the way back…
CLASSICAL | RPO performs “La mer”
Few RPO guest conductors generate excitement quite like Fabien Gabel. The Quebec City Orchestra music director has become a Rochester favorite since his 2014 debut. Gabel is especially adept at French repertoire, weaving a tapestry of evocative textures and heightened moods. This Thursday and Saturday, the conductor will lead the orchestra in Claude Debussy’s “La…
HIP-HOP | Mic Lanny
Albany-based rapper Mic Lanny quit art school to pursue a career in low-blow rapping. And by that I mean rhyme after rhyme and jab after jab, this guy has some punchlines. With comedic wordplay and a light-hearted perspective, Mic Lanny delivers with lyrical dexterity and an old-school feel, similar to that of the late, great…
From Woodstock to the world
When I reached Melanie by phone recently, she told me she’d always had that gravelly voice that would make her famous. The one-name singer emerged from the Woodstock festival and captured the spirit of the 1960’s. Growing up in New York City, she had eclectic musical taste. “I loved Billie Holiday when I was 12,”…
Album review: ‘The Isotopes Play Surf Music’
The Isotopes “Play Surf Music” Self-released theisotopes.com “The Isotopes Play Surf Music” isn’t just another Isotopes record. Well, it is … it just seems this Rochester surf band has finally hit its stride with all 16 tracks showing up with something catchy and truly Isotope-y. It would seem The Isotopes have developed a signature sound…
Album review: ‘Chasing Ghosts’
Jerry Falzone & Liar’s Moon “Chasing Ghosts” Self-released facebook.com/jerryfalzoneandliarsmoon It’s the rapid deployment of all the instruments in this heady CD’s opening cut that expertly sets up “Chasing Ghosts.” The latest by Jerry Falzone & Liar’s Moon, “Chasing Ghosts” is a fine outing with a keen power-pop sensibility. Falzone stands like the king of the…
Feedback 5/10
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…
Urban Action 5/10
This week’s calls to action include the following events and activities. (All are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted.) School board will meet on Geneseo The Rochester school board will hold a special meeting on Thursday, May 11, to vote on the 2017-2018 budget for the district and on a plan for…
Game Dev Challenge shows gaming’s potential
Several Rochester Institute of Technology students and graduates emerged as winners in a statewide digital game-development competition, the Game Dev Challenge. The Challenge drew 40 entries; awards were announced Monday at a ceremony at the Strong National Museum of Play, hosted by RIT’s MAGIC Center. But the challenge and the awards ceremony illustrate something more:…
Brockport steps up on power program
Local climate activists have been pressing governments across Monroe County, particularly the City of Rochester, to set up a program in which it buys electricity and sells it to residents. But the Village of Brockport, not the city, is the first community out of the gate. Brockport hasn’t set up a community choice aggregation program…
Barack Obama’s $400K: dimming hope for change
The Democratic Party desperately needs to change its message – and its heart. Barack Obama could have led that change.
Film review: ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’s” willingness to do as it pleases turns out to be the movie’s most appealing quality
Film review: ‘My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea’
Written and directed by comic artist Dash Shaw, “My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea” is a trippy, sometimes surreal animated comedy that follows what happens when a high school misfit discovers an administrative cover up hiding the fact that his school is dangerously not up to code. But no one heeds his warnings,…
Theater review: ‘Titanic the Musical’ at CenterStage
The RMS Titanic, at the time the greatest ship that had ever set out across the Atlantic, collided with an iceberg on April 15, 1912. Within two hours and 40 minutes, the ocean liner sank and more than 1,500 people lost their lives in icy waters. If this feels like a spoiler, it is –…
