05.12-05.19.10
You Are Here
Where are we headed as a region? Maybe a glance at Hunter Morrison’s piece, Tech Belt will give you a clue: p.s., it starts with where we already are. Watch video as Kevin Cronin mounts up for Bicycle Week, Julie Cajigas interviews Near West Theatre about The Secret Garden, and NEOtropolis explores marketing start-ups. Roldo questions regional issues while Mansfield celebrates freedom and David Budin tells us why people call him a real man only one day a year. Now do you have a better idea where you are? –Thomas Mulready
Experience Cool Cleveland videos & podcast & BFD blog & Facebook & Twitter & CoolCleveland.com
Tech BeltRedefining Our Region’s Mental Maps
Clevelanders to this day describe themselves as “Eastsiders” or “Westsiders” using a definition of community geography that dates from the founding of the city in 1796 when the Cuyahoga River was the dividing line…
Read more from Hunter Morrison here
How To Win
Say Hello to Patty Quiñónez showing off the cash she pocketed a few weeks ago as a winner in our How To WIN contest.
Watch the video of Patty’s award, and then get busy because we are upping our next award to $300 smackeroos. You can enter our HowToWIN contest by clicking on the SPONSORED: links and Sponsored Videos in this week’s issue of CoolCleveland.com below. Click as many times as you want. The more different links you click, the better your chances of winning. It’s real simple. Real people win real cash, but you can’t win if you don’t click. Just ask Patty. How To WIN
SPONSORED: Join Cuyahoga County Public Library at the Beachwood Community Center on Thu 5/20, 7:30PM to meet Sarah Blake, author of the acclaimed novel, The Postmistress. A simulcast of the show will be broadcast at the Solon Branch library. Books will be available for purchase and signing. Please register for the Beachwood session here, or the the Solon simulcast here.
Jana Nassif is GeneratioNEXT
Promapalooza Drops Sat 6/5
Jana Nassif just wanted to give back. That’s why she got involved with United Way’s GeneratioNEXT organization for young professionals in their 20’s & 30’s. She didn’t think it would be this much fun.Now she’s helping to plan Version 3.0 of Promapalooza, GeneratioNEXT’s annual affair, this one with a Southern Swing theme, at the Ritz-Carlton’s Silver Grille on Sat 6/5 starting at 8PM.
Watch the video as Jana talks about the silent auction, the drinks, the special Southern food and especially the band, The Websters, who will be partying at Promapalooza. Hopefully she’ll see you there as well. http://www.UnitedWayCleveland.org/PROM
To ensure you receive Cool Cleveland every week, take a moment now and add CoolCleveland@CoolCleveland.com to your address book, trusted sender list, or corporate white list. Learn More.
The mall: redesigned Local people offered plenty of ideas for transforming that empty space known as the Mall. Ideas like what?
Breathe somewhat easily Our air quality has improved… but we still receive an “F” for air pollution. View American Lung Association’s annual State of the Air report here.
Foodies on the spot Foodie blogger Michelle Vocaire Venorsky picks the brain of Food & Wine restaurant editor Kate Krader for her thoughts on Cle’s food scene. Read
Collinwood Rec Ctr breaks ground on Sat 5/15 at 10AM. Rec ctr [rendering pictured] will feature Cle’s first indoor water park, b-ball courts, fitness rooms and more. Info
Tigers invade the St. Clair Superior neighborhood on Wed 5/19. http://StClairSuperior.org/yearoftheTIGER.html
WHOA! 10-page spread in Inc. mag on the Youngstown Business Incubator It’s about time
Mike’s Barn rocks his (final- again!) 15th season with Vibra-Stage Technology Read the summer lineup
SPONSORED: The secret that everyone is talking about! Don’t miss your chance to see The Secret Garden @ Near West Theatre. This delightful Broadway musical continues its run on the Near West stage May 13-16 & 21-23. Based on the famous children’s book, it is an enchanting story that features some of the most beautiful music ever written for Broadway. The Secret Garden is perfect for audiences of all ages! For show information & to purchase tickets, visit http://www.nearwesttheatre.org.
Did you know Cleveland was recently named in the Top 40 of best places for biking in the country by Bicycling magazine? Attorney and bike advocate Kevin Cronin, who helped start Cleveland Bikes and Cleveland Bicycle Week spills the beans about a public bike rack that’s being built across the street from Quicken Loans Arena, where you’ll be able to lock up your bike, take a shower and store your clothes in a locker.
Get ready for Cleveland Bike Week Sat 5/15 thru Sun 5/23, all over town: Read more
SPONSORED: It’s Time To Plant Holden Arboretum’s Annual Plant Sale: May 15-16: 10AM 4PM. In addition to Holden’s own propagated wildflowers, selected area nurseries will offer a wide selection of perennials, annuals, herbs, woody plants and garden accessories. Discounted admission all weekend. Visit http://www.holdenarb.org for more details.
Cool Cleveland Podcast Weekly roundup of cool events, in an easy-to-digest 3 minute audio format, for playback on your computer or iPod.
Click here to subscribe to the Cool Cleveland Podcast in iTunes.
St. Patricks Club building is transformed into the most enchanting of gardens, with the audience surrounding the performance, being immersed in the garden, with lights, interactive video and a bevy of talented local actors. Watch the video.
Near West Theatre changes lives with this must-see musical… More
SPONSORED: Palate: A Sensual Blend of Food + Art, a benefit for MOCA Cleveland on Sat 5/22, kicking off at 6PM with cocktails, hors d’oeuvres & art auction, then 5 top Cleveland chefs create artistic food environments firing the immersive pleasure of your five senses. Samba Party starts at 10PM with live music & wine bar. MOCACleveland.org
Seussical! The Musical @ Beck Ctr Dr. Seuss’ works come alive in this “fantastical, magical, musical extravaganza” opening at the Beck Center on Fri 5/14 at 7:30PM. All the faves will be there: from Horton the Elephant and Lazy Mayzie to Gertrude McFuzz and the Whos of Whoville. ClickGREEN Dig in the dirt and learn about caring for the Earth at the next BotaniCool School for Little Buds on Sat 5/15 from 10:30AM – noon @ Cle Botanical Gardens. For kiddos age 3-5. Make sure to register before Sat! [Nature kids pictured.] Dig
Then come back to the Beck on Sun 5/16 for their annual hands-on open house. Be loud, act proud and get your creative juices flowing. Bang a drum, try on costumes, make pottery and dance like crazy–all from 12 – 2PM. Info
Join the CAVS party at the Children’s Museum of Cleveland on Sun 5/16. Brush up on your b-ball skills with a basketball training course and show your spirit by making a team door hanger. 11AM – 4PM. Click
Moving It To MarketPlus, view episode on Rubber City to Polymer Center
What do you do, when you want to market your start-up, but traditional marketing techniques won’t work? Catch this exciting discussion on the upcoming episode of NEOtropolis, broadcast on Western Reserve PBS at 8:30PM this Fri 5/14, hosted by CoolCleveland’s Thomas Mulready. Click here for your cable channel. Remember, this is not business as usual. Drop us a line at NEOtropolis@CoolCleveland.com. After all, it’s your region, too. Read, view & comment.
A hot selection of tech and business news & events from around the region. Got business news? Send it to: EVENTS@CoolCleveland.com
Three NEO companies make the grade Hotcards.com, Jakprints [pictured] and Talan Products receive spots on the 2010 Inner 100, a list of the fastest growing inner-city companies, as compiled by Initiative for a Competitive Inner City and Bloomberg BusinessWeek. See
GREEN Green to win Cle Clinic’s Solon Family Health Ctr is one of 14 bldgs competing in EPA’s nat’l competition to have the greatest reduction in wasted energy. Check it out
Cle AMA Bowling Night Go bowling w/ the American Marketing Assoc. on Thu 5/13 at 5:30PM @ Winking Lizard Lkwd. RSVP
Diversity Management Conference Learn how diversity investments pay off @ CSU MGL College of Urban Affairs on Fri 5/14, 8AM – 5PM. Register
Meet The Champions Talk with Vicky Poole, founder of Gardens Under Glass (see CoolCleveland video here), on Thu 5/20 8-9:30AM at Trinity Commons. Register
HOT Rebuilding the Cities That Build America conference on transforming Ohio’s economy @ Trinity United Methodist Church in Youngstown on Fri 5/21, 9AM-4PM. Register
HOT Discover opps for writers and network w/ media mavens @ the Ohio Professional Writers spring mtg on Sat 5/22 at WKSU Radio from 11AM-2PM. CoolCleveland’s Thomas Mulready will be key speaker. Click
Weapons of Mass Creation film, art & music fest on Sat 5/22 and Sun 5/23. Info
AMPLIFY Spkr Series Nonprofit and community service panel discussion on Wed 5/26 at 11AM @ Wyndham Cle. Details
Patient Experience Summit Gather w/ thought leaders in healthcare, academia and biz to discuss ways to inspire innovative solutions that give patients the best care possible. Tue 5/25 – Wed 5/26 @ InterContinental. Must register by Mon 5/17. Register
Saving American Manufacturing workshop on Thu 5/27 @ Doubletree in Independence. (Pre-social on Wed 5/26.) Register
Real Men Cook
People ask me why I’ve participated in Real Men Cook so many times – 19 out 22.
My answer is that it’s the one day of the year that it’s guaranteed that I’ll be called a real man. That’s one answer.
The other one is that this annual benefit for the Women’s Alliance for Recovery Services could help a lot of women who need assistance…
Read the story by David Budin here
Populating the Future of University Circle On Wed 5/12, WCPN’s Around Noon host Dee Perry will engage local college students in a panel discussion on ways to improve University Circle. Hear what young creatives have to say about the neighborhood and hear fresh ideas for improvement. 5PM @ CMA’s Gartner Aud. [CWRU pictured by Taber Andrew Bain.] Info
SPONSORED: Tonight, Wed 5/12 at 8PM, WCLV 104.9 is live at Kulas Hall for one of the Cleveland International Piano Competition’s Laureate concerts. The second place winner in 2009, Dmitri Levkovich hooks up with the Cavani String Quartet for the Brahms Piano Quintet. Also, solo pieces by Chopin, Rachmaninoff and Strauss. Next Tue 5/18, at 8PM, WCLV broadcasts the 4/25 joint concert by the past two winners of our Jubilation Church Choir Festival – the 2009 winner, the Westlake United Methodist Chamber Choir and the 2008 winner, the Choir of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, previewing this year’s Jubilation Festival on Thu 5/20 and Fri 5/21 at St. John’s Cathedral. Full details on all of WCLV’s programming at http://www.wclv.com.
We love when communities come together to create something beautiful. In this case, kids from Case Elementary School created an outdoor sculpture–“Windows”–to showcase the diversity and unity of the St Clair Superior neighborhood. Meet these creative kids when the art’s unveiled on Thu 5/13 at noon. Unite
GREEN Earth to U. Farmers Market North Union Farmers Market and CSU’s collaborative local market is back! Get some Ohio-grown fruit and veggies, plus locally-baked goods, when the market opens on Thu 5/13 from 10:30AM – 1:30PM. Listen to live up-and-coming Cle musicians while enjoying the gorgeous weather downtown. Get local
HOT Celebrate Bike Week @ Room Service Gordon Square’s super awesome shop, Room Service, is kicking off Cleveland Bicycle Week on Fri 5/14 w/ bike-themed merch (prints, tees, notebooks, baby stuff, coolness) and drinks served from 4 – 9PM. Store open 11AM – 9PM. Ride your bike and get a discount. [Flier pictured.] Click
HELP Real Men Cook XXII A hundred real men from all walks of life will share their epicurean delights at a Grazing Gala on Fri 5/14. Taste some yummy food from 11:30AM – 1:30PM and support Women’s Alliance for Recovery Services’ mission to give Ohio women “new hope for a new life.” @ Doubletree Hotel. Info
Spring Whimsy @ Log Cabin Gallery Spend Fri 5/14 at a cabin in lovely Peninsula gazing at art made by local folk and listening to live music via Jon Mosey and his clawhammer banjo and guitar. Meet these clever artists at a special reception from 5 – 7PM. View artist list here.
When Oil, Water & Fire Mix Don Frey works with nature to create amazing works of art. He works outdoors w/ earth-toned oil paints, sprays the canvas w/ a garden hose and adds natural materials to create organic patterns and textures. View his newest work @ Tremont’s Studio 11 opening on Fri 5/14 from 6 – 10PM. Details
HOT Pour L’Amour Fashion Show Watch some of the region’s hottest designers bring their spring styles to the runway @ legation, a gallery. Models will sashay in couture designs created by Virginia Marti College of Art and Design grads, TJ Horst and others on Fri 5/14 at 7:30PM. Get tix now. Sashay
HOT No Exit @ Arts Collinwood No Exit plays music you’ve never heard before. This new music ensemble plays contemporary avant-garde concert music from emerging artists around the world, with a strong focus on composers residing in Cle. Prep your ears and open your mind when they play on Sat 5/15 at 8PM @ Arts Collinwood. [No Exit performer pictured at left.] Take me there
Weekend in Ohio City Spend the weekend hobnobbing around Ohio City. First, at Evening in Ohio City on Sat 5/15 at 6PM, Lolly the Trolley will escort you to six unique area homes for progressive food and wine tasting. Then on Sun 5/16, the Ohio City Home Tour runs from 10AM – 4PM and features eight amazing homes to browse. Info
HELP PAWS 4 A Cause Adopt-A-Thon Thinking about adopting a pooch? Meet w/ local rescue groups and adoptable dogs at the PAWS 4 A Cause Adopt-A-Thon and Family Fun Day on Sat 5/15 from 9:30AM – 2:30PM @ Moreland Hills Polo Grounds. Even if you’re not expanding your furry family, bring your dog and join in on many fun activities and contests. Woof
GREEN Walk+Roll: Kamm’s Corners Grab your bike, walking shoes or skateboard and join the first Walk+Roll event of the season on Sat 5/15 at noon. Enjoy three miles of street-based fun plus go on neighborhood bike and walking tours. Not only is this a Walk+Roll event, it’s also the kickoff of Cleveland Bicycle Week and the new Hooley on Kamm’s Corners. Details
GREEN Eco-Fiesta & Art Improv Raise ecological, environmentally friendly, and creative consciousness at the Eco-Fiesta on Sat 5/15. Barter at the swap shop, hit the stage w/ Nia Coffeehouse Open Mic, write haiku and try your hand at juggling from 11AM – 5PM @ Memorial-Nottingham Public Library. Call 216-326-8318 for more info. Info
Cafe NEO @ PlayhouseSquare Cleveland, 1920: Immigrants are arriving. And so are ghosts. Specifically, the ghosts of three great Greek tragedies, who’ve hitched a ride in a book of their plays and end up at a Greek coffee shop. Catch a dramatic staged reading of Cafe NEO [pictured], a Greek tragedy with a comical twist, on Sat 5/15 at 7PM @ 14th Street Theatre. Click
It’s Only Rock and Roll The Rock Hall’s 8th Annual Benefit is here! Catch performances by inductee Terry Sylvester formerly of the Hollies, Gene Chandler, Sheila E., Mark Farner formerly of Grand Funk, MC Hammer and Tommy James and the Shondells. Proceeds benefit the Museum’s educational programs. Be there Sat 5/15 from 8 – 11:30PM. Click
HOT Spring Fling! Summer Socials! Celebrate the arts while chillin’ at a beautiful local home w/ the Beck Center’s spring socials series. Some Enchanting Evening on Sat 5/15 takes place at the gorgeous Westlake home of Jennifer and Hamp Howell. Twinkling tiki lights and fragrant orchids fill the air at this island-themed event. 6PM. Tell me more
GREEN Bicycling Pajama Party! Put on your flashiest PJs, hop on a bicycle and join the gang from Century Cycles for their regularly-scheduled Night Ride on the Towpath Trail. Not only will you be part of a pajama-clad bike gang, you’ll be treated to glow-in-the-dark goodies and a cereal snack at the ride’s halfpoint. Meet @ Century Cycle Peninsula at 8PM on Sat 5/15. Ride on
HOT Artist as Quiltmaker Fireland Association for the Visual Arts’ art quilt revolution/ showcase is one of the longest running venues for exhibiting fiber art in the nation. Check out the show’s 26th year, opening on Sun 5/16 from 2 – 4PM. These aren’t your average fair quilts–these are visually exciting pieces of art that push the quilting envelope. [Just check out Christy Gray’s quilt Waiting to Be Kissed; pictured.] More
2010 Art Song Festival Int’l concert artists, singers and pianists congregate at Baldwin-Wallace for the Annual Art Song Festival on Mon 5/17 through Sat 5/22. Art Song is about collaboration; particularly between a singer and pianist. Hear amazing recitals, guest speakers and check out master classes on the art of collaboration. Click
40 Reasons to Stay Sober isn’t a recovery group event. Rather, it’s the title of an all-new performance by ’08 Poetry Slam Grand Champ Fatal Prose. Listen to Fatal Prose spit rhymes while you sip free coffee @ the next Nia Coffeehouse event on Tue 5/18 from 6 – 9PM @ Cle Hts Coventry Library. Plus, music by Vince Robinson & The Jazz Poets. [Flier pictured.] Info
Ride in honor of those who’ve been injured or killed in a bicycle accident. Ride to raise awareness that bicycles have a place on the road. On Wed 5/19 people around the globe are conducting a Ride of Silence [pictured] to promote bike safety. Put on a helmet, a white shirt and join the Cle ride leaving downtown at 5:45PM and heading to University Circle. You can join the ride anytime. Details
Send your cool events to: Events@CoolCleveland.com
Free At Last!
Raymond Towler is a better man than me … or you. He’s a black man who endured nearly 30 years of incarceration for the rape of a white 12-year-old girl, a rape he didn’t commit. In any prison in America that kind of charge — especially against a black man — ensures that the time served will be hard indeed.
Nonetheless, Towler emerged from his nightmarish ordeal amazingly unscathed psychologically, and totally free of bitterness. Talk about true grit.
I, on the other hand, would have been banging my head against the cell bars from morning till night … to the point where I became so crazed guards would have placed me in a rubber room — to spend all my days playing handball with my own…
Read more from Mansfield Frazier here
Quick reviews of recent events
Submit your own review or commentary to Events@CoolCleveland.com
Review: Dancing Wheels @ State Theatre 5/1/10Review: Ballet Theatre of Ohios Sleeping Beauty @ Akron Civic Theatre 5/2/10
Read the review by Elsa Johnson & Victor Lucas here
Review: Shelby Lynne @ Beachland Ballroom 5/5/10
Read the review by Greg Cielec here
Review: Cleveland Orchestra & Chorus @ Severance Hall 5/6/10
Read the review by Kelly Ferjutz here
Review: Humble Boy @ Dobama Theatre 5/7/10
Read the review by Roy Berko here
Review: Looking For American Dreams @ Akron Art Museum thru 5/30/10
Read the review by John Benson here
Preview: Bridie Carroll of Hudson Appears On Broadway in Grease
Read the preview by Roy Berko here
Progressive Field Will Get a Face Lift of Some Kind
You who are paying close attention may have noticed that in my last posting here I said that a Gateway official told me that – despite a contrary mention in a New York Times article – Progressive Field was NOT getting a re-do.Well, apparently that’s not true. Sorry about that…
Read the rest by Roldo Bartimole here
Read other recent pieces by Roldo Bartimole here
Most clicked
Here are the Top 5 most clicked links from last week’s issue, with one more chance for you to click.
1) 2) RoldoLINK Roldo recalls what happened on May 4th, 1970 and why we should be afraid. Read.
3) Mansfield gives us some tips on how to “green up” the Cleveland area Read.
4) Not Your Parents Roller Derby Redefining the sport with strategy and grace. Read.
5) What’s The Secret? The Secret Garden, some of the most beautiful music ever written for Broadway @ Near West thru Sun 5/23. NearWestTheatre.org
Do you know where your community is? We’ve been working hard with our writers to help figure this out: Roldo Bartimole, John Benson, Roy Berko, David Budin, Julie Cajigas, Kelly Ferjutz, Mansfield Frazier, Elsa Johnson & Victor Lucas, Hunter Morrison and Sarah Valek, And lastly, though certainly not least, thanks to our readers and everyone who partners with us. Want to volunteer and contribute your writing to Cool Cleveland? Send your reviews, articles, or story ideas to: Events@CoolCleveland.com.
* Experience the Cool Cleveland podcasts and videos each week at http://www.CoolCleveland.com
* Join the conversation at Brewed Fresh Daily http://www.BrewedFreshDaily.com
* Watch NEOtropolis on Western Reserve PBS every Friday at 8:30PM
* Listen to Cool Cleveland on WCLV-FM 104.9 twice each Friday during drive time
* Send your cool events to: Events@CoolCleveland.com, and your letters to: LettersATCoolCleveland.com
* Receive your own copy of the free weekly Cool Cleveland e-zine at http://www.CoolCleveland.com
* Think about moving to the Cleveland Plus region: ClevelandPlusLiving.com
* Friend us on Facebook: http://www.profile.to/thomasmulready
* Follow us on Twitter: http://www.Twitter.com/thomasmulready
Where are you?
–Thomas Mulready
LettersATCoolCleveland.com
Cool Networks LLC / 14837 Detroit #105 / Cleveland, OH 44107
All contents (c)2010 Cool Networks LLC all rights reserved
