10.30-11.06.2019 Wellness

10.30-11.06.19
Wellness

You doin’ OK? Staying active means staying alive. Whether it’s hiking in our National Park, experiencing the new Pop Life yoga/wellness studio, or sampling a prix fixe sweet deal during Cleveland Restaurant Week.

Would Shaker Square be better off with part of Shaker Boulevard closed to create more green space, or not? Read this week’s counter-commentary by Kevin Cronin. Is it better to grieve on Dia de Muertos (in Gordon Square), or celebrate with food, music, dance and visual arts? Would you be happier dancing to Waterband (at the Beachland), Uzizi (at Kent’s Water Street Gallery), or MikelParis (at Riverdog Retreat in Oberlin) this Saturday?

Can music be the healing power that bridges social, cultural and political divides? Find out as Happy Dog Takes on the World. If so, should you come on down to Rock Hall Nights to find out how to cast your own ballot for the next Inductee? Is the “G” word (gentrification) always a bad thing for a community like Hough (Mansfield has some thoughts). Let’s get better together. –Thomas Mulready

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Photo by Thomas Mulready

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Wellness on Waterloo

Regular visitors to Waterloo Road in North Collinwood have been puzzling for more than two years over a hulking old bank building a half block from the Beachland that in late summer of 2017 suddenly exploded in a covering of bright, geometric murals. “Coming soon,” it promised. And then it sat, empty.

Well, “soon” is now, and this Friday is the grand opening of Pop Life, a collaborative of businesses created by Shaker Heights native Joda Davis Mueller featuring a gallery, yoga/wellness studio, and a cafe offering organic pressed juice, smoothies, bowls, snacks and superfood lattes. Davis calls it “a multidisciplinary space, with a focus on art and wellness.” Fri 11/1.

SPONSORED: DANCECleveland presents RUBBERBANDance Group Founded in 2002 by Victor Quijada, RUBBERBANDance Group (RBDG) is recognized worldwide for its innovation, its significant contribution in dance, and for its role in the development of a new style inspired by breakdancing, classical ballet, and dance theatre. Vic’s Mix is the company’s Ohio debut with both humorous and serious moments, a kind of “best of!” On Sat 11/9 @ 7:30PM at Ohio Theatre, Playhouse Square. Tickets 216-241-6000 or DanceCleveland.org.

Honoring Ancestors

For the 15th year, Cleveland Public Theatre is hosting an all-day Dia de Muertos – Day of the Dead – celebration, based on the Mexican tradition of honoring and celebrating family and friends who have passed on, not with grieving, but with food, music, dance and visual arts that bring back happy memories.

The celebration in Gordon Square, put together by artistic director Hector Castellanos Lara, features live music, food, hands-on arts activities, traditional altars created by artists and the community, and the Procession of Skeletons and Skulls, which is expected to exceed 600 marchers. Sat 11/2.

VIDEO: Culinary Pioneer Brad Friedlander Explains Cleveland Restaurant Week

As the man behind legendary culinary destinations such as Moxie, Lopez y Gonzalez, Red, The Steakhouse and Blu, The Restaurant, Brad Friedlander was there when Cleveland Independents was formed. The largest group of local chefs in the country, over 85 area restaurants are now offering a stunning discount from November 4-16 for Cleveland Restaurant Week 2019.

Many participating restaurants will offer a prix fixe 3-course menu for $33, and most offer gift cards and gift certificates for the holidays. Watch the video as Brad offers his take on the state of the culinary arts in Cleveland. ClevelandIndependents.com.

Another Vision for Shaker Square

Last week our columnist C. Ellen Connally, a respected community member and Shaker Square resident, shared her thoughts on a proposal being pushed by some city leaders to revamp and hopefully revive the aging Square (one of the first planned shopping districts in the country) by shutting down part of Shaker Boulevard.

Another respected community member, Kevin Cronin, who grew up near Shaker Square, responds to Connally’s piece with some ideas and thoughts of his own, suggesting an alternative look at some of the issues she raised. “New plans are needed to energize the Square,” he says. “Motorists don’t need support. Shoppers and residents do.”

The BorderLight International Theatre + Fringe Festival debuted last July, taking place over a five-day period with dozens of productions in venues around downtown. The festival just announced that it attracted 4,000 people to more than 100 performances.

But given the work and resources involved in mounting such an event, it’s also announced that BorderLight will be a biennial, taking place next n 2021. That should be a special summer for Cleveland, because it puts BorderLight in the same year as the next FRONT International Cleveland Triennial.

* Christina Vassallo came to Cleveland from New York City in 2014 to take the helm of SPACES gallery, which was then looking for both a direction and a home. Under her leadership it found both and became an exciting place to be, with new collaborations, provocative and well-executed shows, and more community engagement. She’s now leaving us become executive director of the Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia.

For the 4th year Kent State University at Stark will be presenting its guitar weekend, three days of six-string concerts in diverse genres, along with workshops and a student showcase. Thu 10/31-Sat 11/2

* Les Delices concerts offer two blockbuster composers: Mozart & Beethoven. Fri 11/1-Sun 11/3.

* Groovy Waterband holds 20th anniversary reunion concert at the Beachland. Sat 11/2.

* Uzizi performs multimedia show at Kent’s North Water Street Gallery. Sat 11/2.

* Mushroomhead puts their costumes and masks back on for an Agora concert. Fri 11/1.

* Youngstown’s powerhouse Vindys rock the Music Box. Fri 11/1.

Have a Howling Good Time With Owls & Howls

Learn about the serious business of animal enrichment and see animal ambassadors at work and play. Enjoy games, crafts, and special demonstrations. Live animal demonstrations will take place every hour on Sat 11/9 from 10:30AM to 2:30PM in the outdoor Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center & Woods Garden – Presented by KeyBank (rain or shine).

Have a howling good time with hands-on activities fit for the season. The event is free for members and included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information, please visit CMNH.org.

WED 10/30
CIM faculty members Todd Wilson and Elizabeth DeMio join forces for a program of four-handed piano pieces at Trinity Cathedral’s Brownbag Concerts.

* Just in time for Halloween, the Capitol Theatre screens the classic 1960 horror film Psycho.

* Americana band the Way Down Wanderers returns to CVNP’s Happy Days Lodge with a new album.

* Cleveland Clergy Alliance sponsors Senior Night with the Cavs.

Click here for more events on Wed 10/30

THU 10/31
Akron Municipal Court is once again offering couples with a taste for the offbeat and outre the chance to be married at the spectacularly ornate Akron Civic Theatre on Halloween – in costume, if they like.

* All Faiths Food Pantry benefit at the Music Box features reggae and acoustic music.

* University of Akron Theatre Program presents Brecht play about the rise of tyranny, through Sun 11/2; also Thu 11-7-Sun 11/10.

* The Millennial Theatre Project stages Carrie The Musical at the Akron Civic Theatre through Sat 11/2.

* CIM Opera Theater performs contemporary work The Juniper Tree, through Sun 11/3.

* Mahall’s 20 Lanes hosts weird and spooky Halloween party with a 90s theme.

* SPACES’ End of Days immersive exhibit hosts a Halloween party; it remains on view through Sat 11/2.

Click here for more events on Thu 10/31

FRI 11/1
Halloween is a holiday made for drag artists, with their mastery of costuming, makeup and wigs. One of several drag shows this week is Dragoween at the Beachland Ballroom, featuring 16 drag performers and starring St. Louis’s Maxi Glamour, who was featured in season three of Dragula.

* Cleveland Pops Orchestra brings the wonderful world of Oz to Severance Hall.

* Six artists are featured at Bonfoey Gallery’s Artists to Watch.

* Preservation Hall Jazz Band performs a tribute to Cuba at the Kent Stage.

* The monthly MIX party at the Cleveland Museum of Art is all about magic and illusion.

* Join Neil’s Monster Dance Party at Nighttown for an evening of post-Halloween fun.

* Four artists explore their identities in Getting To Know You at CIA’s Reinberger Gallery.

* No Exit New Music presents an evening of off-the-wall string music at Wolfs on Larchmere.

Click here for more events on Fri 11/1

SAT 11/2
The Cleveland Public Library’s Maker Faire moves to the Great Lakes Science Center this year, where there’s more room to watch things explode and burn, play with slime, roll a few games of SKEEbowling and tinker with LEGO blocks, robots, drones and 3D instruments.

* Apollo’s Fire presents cellist Rene Schiffer in solo Bach concert. Also tomorrow.

* All-day Seed School offers gardeners and farmers training in the basic element of growing.

* Discussion at Sculpture Center looks at challenges facing black artists.

* The first Saturday Pro Shop Market is back at Mahall’s with modern and vintage finds and handmade goods.

* O.A.R. sideman MikelParis performs his own distinctive music at Riverdog Retreat.

Click here for more events on Sat 11/2

SUN 11/3
French organist Pierre Queval is only 31, but he’s already played the instrument at many of his native country’s major churches and cathedrals, and is the head organist at one of them. He’ll perform at free concert on the organ at Cleveland Museum of Art’s Gartner Auditorium.

* Retiring CMSD “Nurse Barbara” shares her experiences in story and song at the BOP STOP.

Click here for more events on Sun 11/3

MON 11/4
Cleveland Independents’ Cleveland Restaurant Week is here again, with the largest number of participants ever – around 50 – offering the fixed-price special menus. Did they say “week”? That’s a misnomer – it actually runs through Sat 11/16. More time to discover at new favorite eatery!

* New Orleans drag/bounce artist Big Freedia entertains at the Beachland Ballroom.

Click here for more events on Mon 11/4

TUE 11/5
Can music bridge social, cultural and political divides? That’s a question panelists will address at this month’s Happy Dog Takes on the World, which will explore whether music really is a universal language in “Music as Political Diplomacy.”

* Playwright David Henry Hwang talks at the Maltz Center about writing outside your comfort zone.

Click here for more events on Tue 11/5

WED 11/06
Don’t we all just love to argue about who should be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and who absolutely doesn’t belong there? Come down to Rock Hall Nights to learn about the induction process and cast a vote for your favorites.

* Mystery writer Les Roberts tells his Cleveland Stories at the Music Box.

* Trinity’s Brownbag concerts present music inspired by Claudia Rankine’s book-length poem Citizen.

* Oberlin Opera Theater presents Britten opera based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream through Sun 11/10.

Click here for more events on Wed 11/06

Send your cool events to: Events@CoolCleveland.com

The Dreaded “G” Word

The neighborhood in which my wife and I reside is currently heating up in terms of interest from developers, but we are neither surprised nor fearful since we’ve known for a long time now that the community of Hough was going to eventually be “discovered,” as if we had somehow been lost…

* What – No Tweet? The hope among progressives and other right-thinking Americans is that the sentiments expressed by the fans at the stadium were a reflective microcosm of the mood of the voting public at large. If the demonstration did nothing else…

Read other stories from Mansfield Frazier here