City’s choice: Bills Training Camp
There are only 32 teams in the
National Football League, and every summer Rochester plays host to one of them.
If you love football, don’t miss the Buffalo Bills’ annual training camp at
Saint John Fisher College (3690 East Avenue), July 29 to August 23.
You can learn a lot about the
techniques behind the game from watching the coaches coach, and there’s plenty
of simulated action to satisfy your football cravings. They don’t play scored
games, but they progress through individual drills to situational scrimmages.
If you follow the Bills, training camp is a rare opportunity to see how the
team learns and grows together. Watch the Bills’ new rookie class matched up
against veteran stars like Eric Moulds, Sam Adams, and Takeo Spikes.
You’ll hear a lot of oohs and aahs
when the big plays are made, and for the kids, there’s much more to do than
watch from the bleachers. Next to the practice field is the “Bills Experience,”
where kids can test their skills in a variety of interactive games, like the
Quarterback Challenge, the 40-yard dash, the Bungee Run, obstacle courses, and
field goal kicking. After each practice session the players gather along the
fence to sign autographs, and kids under 14 have special access to the players
in the autograph tent.
Food and refreshments are also
available. Expect the typical fare for such events — hotdogs, burgers,
sausages, funnel cakes, and a variety of beverages. You can also purchase game
tickets and the latest Bills merchandise in the giant vendor tent.
Admission is free. You can’t park at
the St. John Fisher campus, but you can catch a free shuttle at Nazareth
College and East Rochester High School. The Bills are still working out the
schedules for weekday and evening practices. Visit www.buffalobills.com or call
the camp hotline, 800-441-5942, for the latest dates and information, including
directions to camp, activities, and practice times and schedules.
— Brandon Heffernan
City’s choice: children’s museums
School may be out, but that doesn’t
mean there’s no need for field trips. The Rochester Museum and Science Center
and the Strong Museum — Rochester’s two places devoted to kids — always pay
great attention to kids’ needs and wants, especially over vacation.
At Strong, the big buzz this summer
is Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, on display now through September 5. You
can put on your sweater and sneakers in Mister Rogers’ house, and then follow
the Trolley to the land of Make Believe. And on weekdays between July 5 and
August 19, you just might catch one of the “Summer Happenings” the museum has
planned. At various times you can jump in on a family craft, a dance lesson, or
a mini-lesson. And don’t forget the long-term exhibits: National Toy Hall of Fame, Can
You Tell Me How To Get To Sesame Street? and Super Kids Market. 1 Manhattan Square. Hours: Monday through
Thursday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 5
p.m., Sunday 12 to 5 p.m. $7; $6 seniors, students; $5 children. 263-2700,
www.strongmuseum.org
At RMSC the new exhibit is Motion Commotion, opening June 18. It’s hands-on, and explores all
kinds of experiments and tricks with movement. Turbulent Landscapes, which opens July 15, explores the
intersection of art and science in nature: sculpted sand dunes, swirling cloud
rings, spinning planets. And in the exploratory exhibits at RMSC, you get to
manipulate and observe all those things. It’s kind of like being the god of
your own mini universe. As always, the Strasenburgh Planetarium has a full
lineup of star shows, laser shows, and giant screen films, with day and evening
show times. 657 East Avenue, 271-4320, www.rmsc.org. Hours: Monday to Saturday
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday 12 to 5 p.m. $8, $7 seniors and students, $6 kids.
Strasenburgh Planetarium Show Schedule: www.rmsc.org, 271-1880
City’s choice: classical music
festivals
There has to be something in the lake
water. This summer, there are three lakefront classical music festivals to
choose from. The warm-weather outdoor music phenomenon is not limited to rock
or jazz: Classical strains suit themselves to the lake vistas and rolling
farmland. Think of it as a soundtrack to your nature-commune experience.
The Skaneateles Festival, Chamber
Music By the Lake, has a long and healthy history. Each summer the Festival
offers up a month of concerts divided between the outdoor Brook Farm and
downtown Skaneateles. Grammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn is possibly
the most famous and well-touted visitor each year, but this year there are also
two big names in the new artistic directors — pianist Elinor Freer and
cellist David Ying of the Eastman School and Rochester’s famous Ying Quartet.
The festival runs from August 11 to Sept 3. For a schedule, see our classical
music listings in this guide, or contact the Fest at 315-685-7418, www.skanfest.org
The
Canandaigua Lake Chamber Music Festival, “Lake Music 2005,” August 19 to 28,
spreads its concerts, children’s concerts, and open rehearsals among a number
of Canandaigua venues — like United Methodist Church, The Granger Homestead,
and the Ontario County Arts Council. A highlight will be the Classical Blue
Jeans concert and barbecue at South Bristol Cultural Center. For a schedule,
see our listings or 394-5678www.lakechambermusic.org
And
finally, the Finger Lakes Chamber Music Festival (June 24 to July 30) will once
again host the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra for a series of concerts in
Branchport, Penn Yan, and Geneva. What’s lovelier than music played by a
world-class orchestra? Hearing it in locations like Hunt Country Vineyards,
Keuka College’s Norton Chapel, and the Smith Opera House. 315-536-8226,
www.fingerlakes-music.org
Andrรฉe Lanthier
City’s choice: Shaw and Stratford
Festivals
In summer, you’ll find that all the
world’s a stage. (If you’re willing to drive a little bit.) The Shaw and
Stratford Festivals are a theater lover’s dream: great acting, great staging,
great plays, and the ability to go from show, to show, to show….
The Shaw Festival, which puts on the
plays of George Bernard Shaw and his contemporaries (1856-1950), this year has
two great ones by Shaw: You Never Can
Tell and Major Barbara. Niagara-on-the-Lake,
Ontario, Canada. Tix: $42-$82 (Canadian dollars). 800-511-7429,
www.shawfest.com
And Stratford is Shakespeare and
other classical theater, though it seems that the definition of “classical” is
nicely expanding and rounding out each year. This season catch Shakespeare
favorites like The Tempest and As You Like It and truly great shows by
other writers: Hello, Dolly; Into the Woods; The Brothers Karamazov; Orpheus
Descending. Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Tix: $20-$114 (Canadian dollars).
800-567-1600, www.stratfordfestival.ca
Gary Ventura
City’s choice: Rochester Public
Market
Our Public Market is 100 this year.
Which basically is a great excuse to celebrate what it has always been: the
most authentically and casually diverse place in the city. The produce is
exceptionally fresh, naturally seasonal, and very affordable. The specialty
shops, for cheese, meat, pastries, and coffee are some of the best in town. The
food vendors give you something to munch on as you walk. Get an empanada and
sit for a minute while you watch people worming their way down the rows. Pop
over to the A\V art gallery and music space (8 Public Market) to see what they
have going on. Buy spinach (or tomatoes, or corn, or basil, or zucchini) from
the same person who picked it that morning and know what it is to eat fresh.
Buy tube socks, ankle bracelets, and the week’s groceries all in the same place
and wonder why you don’t go there more often.
And there are events. The Greatest
Community Garage Sales are on Sundays, June 26, July 10, 17, 24, and 31, and
August 7, 14, 21, and 28. Chef’s Days are Saturdays, July 2, August 6. Bands on
the Bricks (evening events with a Beer Garden and live music) are on Fridays,
July 15, and August 5 and 19. And the Festival of Food (the most amazing
culinary experience) is on Monday, August 22. Don’t miss it.
The Market is open Saturdays, 5 a.m.
until 3:00 p.m. and Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. It’s at 280
North Union Street, off East Main Street (take either Railroad or Union Street
to an entrance). Information: 428-6907. There is an RTS shuttle from several
apartment complexes the first and third Thursdays of the month. (50 cents each
way. Call RTS: 288-1700.)
This article appears in Jun 15-21, 2005.
