A spark in the dark
During the summer, I read a newspaper reporter’s opinion that Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe was actually going to be better because he couldn’t be any worse than last year. That’s like saying he’s going to be better because my Magic 8 Ball told me so. Clearly, in the harmless world of sports, that kind of…
Family valued 11.17.04
‘The Polar Express’ “Did you like it?” I asked. “Yeah,” Lila answered, somewhat ambivalently. She, her two younger siblings, and I all enjoyed it, but I understand her tepid answer. “The art is really amazing,” Lila went on. “The Santa Clause didn’t seem animated at all, it was just so real.” The animation is conspicuously…
The world as stage, life as acting
The screen adaptation of the Somerset Maugham novel Theatre offers something like the perfect part for what was called in the polite fiction of the past “a woman of a certain age.” Annette Bening, who stars in the film, is that woman, an actor at the same stage in her life as her character, Julia…
190 pounds of pimp
Russell “Spiderman” Jordan was the king of cool as he took the New York State Welterweight title from Kemo “Bad Boy” Kolonivic last Thursday for the Boxing at the Roc event held at the Riverside Convention Center. Kolonivic came on strong and seemed a little heftier than Jordan. But no matter how many punches he…
Fight back: Rice, no; Gonzales, no!
The next Bush administration is taking shape, and the cabinet resignations have been flying. There’s reason to celebrate some of them, especially Attorney General John Ashcroft’s. But if the first replacement announcements — Condoleezza Rice for secretary of state, Alberto Gonzales for attorney general — are any indication, we’re in for a rough four years.…
The XX Files
In November many American citizens exercise their most important right. I’m not talking about elections; I’m talking about the one thing we can all agree on: TV. November is sweeps month. That’s when TV shows put on the dog and thousands of people — including my family this year — are asked by Nielsen, the…
Reader feedback 11.17.04
Boxing in Rochester; mourning the election
Body count 11.17.04
The totals: 1,191 American soldiers, 146 Coalition soldiers, and approximately 14,410 to 16,546 Iraqicivilians have been killed in Iraq (a recent survey published by Lancet medical journal estimates as many as 100,000 Iraqi civilians killed) from the beginning of the war and occupation to November 16. American soldiers killed from November 10-16: Specialist Bryan L.…
The future of death
Shortly after 2 a.m. Friday, the state of North Carolina executed Frank Chandler by lethal injection for the murder of 90-year-old Doris Poore. Less than 10 hours later, beside a tree planted in front of the downtown Hall of Justice, a group of about 20 Rochesterians gathered with Chandler and others like him in mind.…
Closing time for city schools
Tucked away between Hickory and Gregory Streets in the city’s South Wedge neighborhood sits a beautifully restored school. Students no longer attend classes here, though. The building’s classrooms have been given new life as upscale condominiums. What was formerly an administrator’s office was recently advertised for a price just south of six figures. Reused buildings…
Holiday Guide 2005
It’s easy to get rundown desperately seeking that warm and fuzzy holiday feeling It’s easy to get rundown desperately seeking that warm and fuzzy holiday feeling. There’s a lot of celebrating between now and the New Year; a lot of family and friends to see; a lot of meals to share and glasses to lift;…
To dance like Clara
By the time audiences see the annual Thanksgiving-time performances of The Nutcracker, with dancers provided by the Rochester City Ballet and music performed by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the work is polished. The poise of the dancers, the memorable swells and leaps in Tchaikovsky’s score, the dancing sweets and swirling snowflakes — it all makes…
Making Scrooge memories
You know it’s December when the fight or flight instinct kicks in. If picking a fight with your sister-in-law has lost its appeal and escaping to Puerto Vallarta isn’t in your budget, channel your energy in a new direction. Take the family to a free or low-cost seasonal event. The annual It’s a Wonderful Life…
The true spirit of Hollywood
While there are inevitably a couple of movies every year set against Christmas — but hardly a cavalcade of films about Hanukkah or Kwanzaa, incidentally — it’s probably misleading to call this a holiday movie preview. If Jesus were blowing out candles in June, these flicks would still be squeezing in under the Academy deadline.…
A stranger comes to town
Despite its winning both the Toronto SummerWorks Festival’sBest Play and Outstanding Ensemble Awards, Alan Dilworth’s The Unforgettingstrikes me as inchoate and barely effective. The ever-resourceful Downstairs Cabaret Theatre imported this offbeat drama and, because it runs less than an hour, added Canadian folksinger Claire Jenkins with Andrew Penner from the play’s cast to perform a…
We must have been good this year
One night I woke to the sound of sled runners and hooves on my roof. I couldn’t see much out my bedroom window so I staggered downstairs. As he sprang from the fireplace, St. Nick opened his bag full of classical concerts to fill the season. First, on November 19, there will be Ossia, the…
Land of the free?
When people throughout the country chose a president on November 2, voters in 11 states had an additional charge: deciding whether to ban same-sex marriage. In all 11 states, and in frequently overwhelming numbers, voters approved the ban. And same-sex marriage became a strong political tool for the Right, which aimed to win voters based…
Holiday calendar
Theater A Christmas Carol Nov 26-Dec 26. Geva Theatre Center,75 Woodbury Blvd. Tix: $13.50-$48. 232-4382, www.gevatheatre.org A Christmas Carol Thurs, Dec 2. Special performance, benefits Hillside Children’s Center, Geva Theatre Center, 75 Woodbury Blvd, 6-10 p.m. $50-$85. www.hillside.com, 256-7521 A Gilbert and Sullivan Christmas Carol Fri-Sat, Dec 10-11. Off-Monroe Players, Salem United Church of Christ,…
Time in a kettle
When Hugo’s toenails brought the faint hint of trauma, and decay began its turn, the Marrons’ copper apple butter urn stood focal, three generations distant from its casting in West Pennsylvania. Uncle Manly commands the governing chant that soothes and chides the stirrers through their scant turns. Canning is when the real mania hits; four…
Holiday classical calendar
Classical Amadeus Chorale Fri, Dec 3. Christmas Poems and Songs, Brockport High School, 40 Allen St, Brockport, 7 p.m. $5. 494-1795, www.theamadeuschorale.org Brighton Symphony Orchestra Sun and Wed, Dec 5 and 15. Holiday songs, John Marcellus, conductor; Sun: 3156 East Ave, 2:30 p.m.; Wed: 150 Highland Ave, 7:30 p.m. 248-0680, www.brightonsymphony.org. Brockport College-Community Chorus and…
