Cover Story
Los Campeones!
Over the last two months, CITY Newspaper’s Best of Rochester readers’ poll has asked for your opinion: What are the best people, places, and things in Rochester? We set the poll at 100 categories — down from almost 140 in previous years — and let you make the call. More than 12,000 people took this…
Week ahead: Events for the week of Monday, October 31
The Canandaigua Lake Association will sponsor “Alien Invasives Threaten Lake,” a talk at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, November 1, as part of its “Viewpoints” series. Hilary Mosher, director of the Finger Lakes Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management at Hobart and William Smith Colleges will talk about the recent activities of the Water Chestnut Strike…
Theater review: “Finding Neverland”
Adapted from the 2004 film about writer J.M. Barrie’s inspiration behind his famous creation, Peter Pan, “Finding Neverland” is currently on stage at RBTL’s Auditorium Theatre
Film review: “Miss Hokusai”
Based on the Hinako Sugiura manga series, Keiichi Hara’s animated feature “Miss Hokusai” takes an unusual approach to the standard biopic. Told in episodic style, the film focuses on the life of legendary Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai — most famous for his “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” woodblock print — as seen through the eyes…
Bold new proposal put forth for Midtown
Underwhelmed by the available options and, he says, determined to give Rochester a real choice, Fraser Smillie sat down at his computer to brainstorm a new concept for Parcel 5 at Midtown in downtown Rochester (see proposal below). What he and Bud DeWolff, owner of DeWolff Partnership Architects, came up with is a statement building:…
Album review: ‘Follow’
Grand Canyon Rescue Episode “Follow” White Mule Records grandcanyonrescueepisode.com There’s a slight difference in how we enjoy hometown homeboys Grand Canyon Rescue Episode and how the Rochester quintet is actually playing. You’d think this band is easy going with its countrified barroom rock ‘n’ roll lope. But I’m here to tell you, beneath this calm…
Film review: “Oasis: Supersonic”
In the mid-90’s, there wasn’t a bigger rock band in the world than Oasis. Led by siblings Noel and Liam Gallagher, the Manchester-based group became the face of Britpop and the biggest thing to hit the British music scene since the Fab Four. With “Oasis: Supersonic,” director Mat Whitecross gives the band the “Behind the…
THEATER | “Finding Neverland”
When Scottish novelist and playwright J.M. Barrie met widow Sylvia Llewelyn Davies and her four sons around the turn of the 20th century, he was in a creative slump. Through a friendship with the energetic children and their mother, Barrie found the inspiration to create his most famous set of characters: Peter Pan and the…
JAZZ | Conference Call Quartet
When it comes to free jazz, few musicians can rival the improvisatory chops of Gebhard Ullmann on bass clarinet, bass flute, and tenor and soprano sax; Dieter Ulrich on percussion; Michael Jefry Stevens on keyboard; and Joe Fonda on the bass. Collectively they have played with just about every major figure in the avant-garde in…
THEATER | “Murder Weapon”
“Murder Weapon” — the last published play by English screenwriter Brain Clemens, well-known for the TV series “The Avengers” — opens where any good mystery thriller should: at the scene of the crime. When Jessica Bligh, a chief constable, accompanies her friend, Diane, home one night after an opera, the two find a grisly scene.…
El Basha makes it easy to go vegetarian
How a restaurant does with its vegetarian and vegan options is a strong indicator of the skills of those working in the kitchen. Since you’re not dealing with the traditional meat-starch-vegetable combination, dishes have to be creative; both the restaurant and the patron need to step out of their typical lanes. I’ve started spending the…
DANCE | “Ailey II”
Started in 1974 as the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble, the internationally renowned dance company Ailey II is performing at Nazareth College as part of the company’s 2016-17 world tour. The 12-member ensemble last performed at Nazareth 15 years ago, and is returning under the artistic direction of Troy Powell. Ailey II will perform both signature…
RECREATION | Quidditch Regional Championship
Quidditch — yes, the non-magical adaptation of the high-flying “Harry Potter” sport — teams from seven Northeastern states are coming together in Rochester to fight for their shot at playing in the US Quidditch Cup. Teams from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont will play in the co-ed contact sport,…
Best Food & Drink 2016
Best Pizza Mark’s Pizzeria. Many area locations. markspizzeria.com Runners up: The Pizza Stop | Pontillo’s | Salvatore’s Best Burger Bill Gray’s. Many area locations. billgrays.com Runners up: The Gate House | Restaurant Good Luck | Swillburger Best Barbecue Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. 99 Court Street, 325-7090, dinosaurbarbque.com Runners up: Good Smoke | Sticky Lips | Texas Bar-B-Q…
HALLOWEEN | Museum of the Dead: Alive Again
Museum of the Dead gives the 21-and-older crowd a chance to trick-or-treat again. Featuring DJ Alykhan, tarot card readings, and tastings from local bars and restaurants, the Halloween event opens up the Memorial Art Gallery’s exhibits to spooky exploration. Costumes are encouraged; attendees have the chance to enter and win a costume contest, with prizes…
Best Goods & Services 2016
Best New Retail Store The Hub by Archimage. 701 Monroe Avenue, 270-4199, thehubroc.com Runners up: Just Games | Second Chic | Trilogy Fashion Foundry Best Bike Shop Park Ave Bike Shop. 2900 Monroe Avenue, 381-3080; 600 Jay Scutti Boulevard, Henrietta, 427-2110; parkavebike.com Runners up: Full Moon Vista | Towners Bike Shop | Towpath Bike Shop…
Debut Novel Series 2016 coming to Writers & Books
Writers & Books earlier this year announced its 2016 Debut Novel Series selections, which are “What Belongs to You” by Louisville, Kentucky-native Garth Greenwell, and “Wreck and Order” by Upstate New York resident Hannah Tennant-Moore. On November 3 and 4, both authors will visit Rochester to partake in a number of joint readings, discussions, and…
Best Local Color 2016
Best Group or Person Improving the Community WALL\THERAPY. @walltherapyny; wall-therapy.com Runners up: B.L.A.C.K. | Junior League of Rochester | Shawn Dunwoody Best Local Eyesore Medley Centre. 285 Medley Centre Parkway, Irondequoit. Runners up: Abandoned Subway | Downtown Rochester | Inner Loop Best Place to Take an Out-of-Towner Wegmans. Many area locations. wegmans.com Runners up: Genesee…
Album review: ‘House of Healing’
Heather Taylor “House of Healing” Self-released heathertaylormusic.com Heather Taylor’s “House of Healing” opens like summer’s dawn with a dramatic, flashy flute flourish that hands off the baton to the woman’s mighty voice. It’s a voice that is full of smoky tone and magnetic, hypnotic vibrato. There’s just something fascinating about a voice like this that…
Best Arts & Entertainment 2016
Best Local Original Band Teagan and The Tweeds. @teaganandtweeds; teaganandthetweeds.com Runners up: Joywave | KOPPS | Machine Gun English Best Local Solo Musician Paul Strowe. paulstrowe.com Runners up: Jackson Cavalier | Cammy Enaharo | Roger Kuhn Best Local Album of 2016 “Head Honcho” by Harmonica Lewinski. harmonicalewinski.bandcamp.com Runners up: “The Devil’s Undertow” by Jackson Cavalier…
Lita Ford endures and always will
Hard rock and metal share a list of infallible constants — things that will always ring true; things that are undeniable. These are mostly unwritten but universally understood in a world where the guitar is the hammer of the gods. For instance: volume? In the red. Drums? Thundering. And another constant, one that has always…
Best Nightlife 2016
Best New Bar/Club Three Heads Brewing. 186 Atlantic Avenue, 244-1224, threeheadsbrewing.com Runners up: Nosh | The Playhouse | Stout Best Bar for Beer Tap & Mallet. 381 Gregory Street, 473-0503, tapandmallet.com Runners up: The Beer Market | MacGregors’ Grill & Tap Room | Victoire Best Bar for Wine Flight Wine Bar. 262 Exchange Boulevard, 360-4180;…
FOLK | Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds
While Brooklyn’s Sister Sparrow has an outstanding voice, it’s an undoubtedly perplexing one as well. Landing somewhere between Dusty Springfield put through a taffy puller and Duffy inhaling helium at a party, Sister Sparrow sings with a joy and infectious exuberance that’s hard not to love. When fronting her marvelously bluesy band, The Dirty Birds,…
Best Answers 2016
Off-the-cuff, sometimes off-color responses to our Best Of Rochester 2016 Primary Ballot
Feedback 10/26
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. Suburbanites can…
HARDCORE | Show Me the Body
Inspiring comparisons to everything from Death Grips to Wolf Eyes, New York City’s Show Me the Body is an enigmatic musical force of nature. Its most recent record, this year’s phenomenal “Body War,” pulses with an industrial energy that feels just as appropriate for the gym as it does for a nervous breakdown. Tracks like…
Were you there? Best of Rochester 2016 Party Photo Gallery
CITY Newspaper threw our annual ‘Best of Rochester’ party at the Village Gate on Tuesday, October 25.
Urban Action 10/26
This week’s calls to action include the following events and activities. All are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted. Rally against sexual violence Several SUNY College at Brockport academic departments and student groups will hold a rally “to make it clear that ‘locker-room talk’ and the sexual and domestic violence it propagates…
VOCAL | Kelli O’Hara
To say that Kelli O’Hara is an accomplished singer with an impressive resume would be a major understatement. The Tony Award-winning artist has impressed audiences and critics alike with her acclaimed performances: as Anna Leonowens in “The King and I,” her turn in the musical version of “The Bridges of Madison County,” a momentous debut…
County still at odds with its largest union
Negotiators for Monroe County and for its largest union are headed back to the table for more contract talks. County and CSEA Unit 7400 officials agreed on a contract proposal in September, but the union’s members recently rejected the deal by a 463 to 377 vote. The union has 1,700 members working in every area…
HIP-HOP | Subsoil
Part deep-thinker, part smart-ass, the hip-hopsters in Subsoil serve up a crushing groove that’ll have you scratching your head and shaking your ass. Putting two emcees — Moon Roc and Laz Green — up front and on top of the band’s organic bed to play lyrical ping pong only adds to the hook and the…
County presents ideas for Highland Park
When Monroe County knocked down the old Cornell Cooperative Extension building off of Highland Avenue in the city, it gained about 2.5 acres of land for Highland Park.
PROG ROCK | Security Project
Formed in 2012 as more of a tribute to the 25th anniversary of Peter Gabriel’s album “Security” than of the man himself, Security Project — featuring drummer Jerry Marotta (known for employing three differently tuned snare drums) and bassist, WARR guitar, and Chapman Stick performer Trey Gunn (King Crimson) — takes on the spirit set…
Charge up and go
[UPDATED AND REVISED 11/1/16]Cruising Route 66 in your Chevrolet or Pontiac V8 was once the ultimate expression of the American spirit — embodying freedom, restlessness, and the wide open road. But more than a half-century later, electric vehicles are inspiring a much different American spirit: one concerned about the steep fiscal and environmental costs of…
CLASSICAL | “Power, Grace, and Glory”
The Rochester Oratorio Society will open its 71st season on Friday, October 28, with an interesting program of works by Leonard Bernstein, Mozart, and J.S. Bach. The concert will begin with Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms,” a 1965 work that moves through several psalms, sung in Hebrew, and includes King David’s well-known Psalm 23. That psalm —…
Rochester seeks new neighborhood strategy
The City of Rochester’s signature neighborhood investment program is in for some changes. Focused Investment, which began in 2009, targeted four borderline city neighborhoods for an intense outlay of time and money: Marketview Heights, Beechwood, Dewey-Driving Park, and Jefferson Avenue. The goal was to stabilize the neighborhoods and possibly help them turn the corner toward…
HONKY-TONK | Angela Perley and The Howlin’ Moons
They look right at home in joints with that sawdust and sweat veneer, but the members of Columbus, Ohio’s Angela Perley and The Howlin’ Moons blow the doors off with some serious tonk ‘n’ roll. The dark, dreamy vocals from Perley are immediate and arresting, but if that don’t get you, the psychedelic sojourns will.…
ART | “Women Superheroes Art Show”
On Saturday, October 29, several local artists will present their superhero-themed work at Women Sanctuary (780 Blossom Road, in the lower west suite). In addition to a women-centered safe space that fosters an empowered community, the venue offers yoga, guided meditation, mom’s groups, support groups, and bingo and trivia nights. The art opening takes place…
CLASSICAL | Eastman Rochester Organ Initiative Festival
I don’t have the exact statistic, but Rochester must have the most festivals per capita. And they’re not just in the summertime. Starting Wednesday, October 26, and running through Friday, October 28, Eastman School of Music hosts the Eastman Rochester Organ Initiative (EROI) Festival, with the theme “Breath for Singing: The Organ and the Human…
This divided nation
As scary as the prospect of a Trump presidency is, a Clinton presidency won’t heal the divisions in this country.
Critics’ picks 2016
Best pathetic PokeStop “Pillars and Archway over Garbage Can” For a good month or two, the sidewalks in some Rochester neighborhoods were filled with people staring at their phones, trying to catch Jigglypuffs and Evees and Snorlaxes. I admit, without any shame, that I was one of the many who got sucked into Pokémon GO.…
Film review: “Ouija: Origin of Evil”
A legitimately creepy horror flick that’s dripping with wit, style, and imagination, “Ouija: Origin of Evil” makes for a fantastic way to get into the Halloween spirit
Theater review: “Church and State”
JCC CenterStage opened its 40th season doing what Ralph Meranto does best: producing a new national work, with local actors, for local audiences.
