Holidaze

12.24-12.31.08
Holidazed

In this week’s issue:

This holiday season has been challenging for many in this region. You may be a little dazed by the economic downturn, the credit collapse, the forced purchase of National City Bank, and the crumbling auto industry, all happening at once. Well, let’s take a deep breath and recognize that we’ve been through tough times before and we’ll get through this season as well. To help keep our economic activity local, we offer last minute additions to our popular Holiday Buying Guide, for those of you still shopping. Plus we point you to some cool music stuff for kids, plus a profile of Yemi Akande of the Cleveland Leadership Center, a Cleveland photographer with a new book, plus music, reviews, and a selection of New Year’s Eve happenings, all in the most clickable email you’ll receive this week. Happy Holidaze! –Thomas Mulready

Holidazed? After that sweaty glance at the clock, you oughta flip the lapper shut and get out and shop. Time is running out to think outside the (Big) Box (stores). With our growing list of local shop owners, purveyors and proprietors, we make things quick, easy AND help you support NEO’s artisans, neighborhood Mom & Pop shops and crafty/creative types in NEO. Buying local is smart, equitable and sustainable. So you support your local economy and keep jobs in the region; we’ll keep ya pointed in the right direction. Check out the guide by clicking here

HOT Out of ideas? CC suggests you give the gift of safety and support your local American Red Cross. The Greater Cleveland chapter is selling great products to keep your family and friends safe in the new year; proceeds stay local to help families in the community. Emergency crank/battery radios (which also charge your cell phone), battery-operated lanterns, several varieties of first aid kits and more are available. Visit http://www.redcross-cleveland.org or call 431-3010.

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Oberlin Conservatory faculty members Marilyn McDonald and Michael Lynn will perform at Inaugural Luncheon Honoring President Barack Obama on 1/20/09. Wow! Click.
Grammy- Winning Dan Zanes & Friends to play for autism benefit in March with net proceeds providing financial support for children with autism and their families in NEO. Click
Cleveland Int’l Film Fest get some love from the Academy. Yeah, that one. Details
Rosenberg lawsuit against PD makes NYT and you can read their story on it here
Karamu Artistic Director Terrence Spivey nominated in Second Annual Nguzo Saba (Seven Principle) Award Ceremony Sun 12/28. Details
Spivey also invited to become a member of the distinguished theatre org the National Theatre Conference. Click and then click again
Looking for last minute gift ideas? Shop local for the holidays. Visit http://www.ibuyneo.com to find participating locally owned businesses in your area

Michael Feigenbaum, the owner of Lucy’s Sweet Surrender at Buckeye/126th has delivered a distressing blog post on the future of his incredible bakery. If you’re not familiar with Lucy’s already, you’re missing the best authentic Hungarian strudel ever. We don’t usually make appeals like this, but make it a point to visit / shop there (or order from them online). It would be extremely sad to see this stellar location close. Read Fiegenbaum’s blog post here.

More food for thought this Holiday Season A new report has found that the United States will suffer a future economic loss of over $1.7T if the current recession drives an additional 3 million children into poverty, as has been predicted. That amounts to a yearly loss of about $35B per year over the lifetime these children. Last year, 13.3 million children were living at/below poverty level as reported by the US Census Bureau. Interesting reading as you head into the holidays.

Do we really want Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack to be the next Secretary of Agriculture, supporting CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations), and promoting genetically engineered crops and animal cloning. The Organic Consumers Association is calling on organic consumers and all concerned citizens to sign their petition, which will be forwarded to your Senators and the President-Elect’s office. Sign

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.

Take Note of Cool Music Events for Kids

If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve found yourself dancing around the kitchen with your kiddo from time to time. It’s fun, it’s an excellent way to exercise and it’s good for you and your kids — and not just for physical health, but for mental well-being as well. When music is turned on, people of all ages react. Babies bounce, young people dance and the elderly sway and smile. Whatever the age and whatever the culture, music has plenty of appeal.

Engaging, educational and entertaining, the power of this medium has long been noted. From music therapy to the Mozart effect, music is known to be a powerful force. But you don’t have to stay in your kitchen to dance (or find good music). In fact, I wouldn’t encourage it. Get out there and take part in a few of these awesome music events in Cleveland… Read more from Jeannie Fleming-Gifford here

Slam U This series of performance poetry workshops presented by the Arts Education Department at PlayhouseSquare is a unique opportunity for high school students to speak their minds, hone their poetry-writing and performance skills and compete for a place on Cleveland’s National Youth Poetry Slam Team that will travel to Brave New Voices, the 12th Annual National Youth Poetry Slam Festival, in July. PlayhouseSquare provides for the team’s travel and expenses. Learn more about the program here.

HOT Space in 3-D See space like never before at this NASA-Glenn event for the whole family on Tue 12/30. Get an in-depth, unique view of the exploration of space at this special feast-for-the-eyes holiday event. http://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/events for schedule.

The Annual New Years at Noon Celebration at the Cleveland Children’s Museum is a great way for the kiddos to experience the thrills of the ball drop without keeping them up all night to do it. Parents need their beauty sleep, too. Hit the Museum on Wed 12/31 at 10AM. http://www.clevelandchildrensmuseum.org.

Noon Year’s Eve festivities at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo include kid-friendly activities the whole family can enjoy. Watch a crew of charismatic critters in a special wild animal show; make New Year’s ReZOOlutions and create eco-friendly crafts on Wed 12/31 at 11AM. http://www.clemetzoo.com.

First Night Akron Now in its 13th, this is a New Year’s Eve celebration unlike any other! This family-friendly, alcohol-free celebration of the New Year brings the community together to experience a brief moment in time while creating lasting New Year’s Eve memories on Wed 12/31. Entertainment and fun featuring music, dance, theater, visual and interactive arts will delight everyone throughout 18 different venues in downtown Akron! For a complete schedule of events, visit http://www.firstnightakron.org.

Hey kids! It’s Farmer Jason of Jason & the Scorchers! He’s in town for the parents, reuniting his namesake band for an adult NYE… but earlier in the day, he’s gonna give the kiddies a dose of raucous fun for the New Year, too! Check him out at the Beachland in the afternoon Wed 12/31. It’s a show definitely for the kiddos; Arts Collinwood regularly books Jason for just that purpose. And hey (erm, hay?) the parents should love it, too. Beachland Ballroom on Waterloo. Details at http://www.beachlandballroom.com.

Cool Cleveland Kids Podcast Weekly roundup of cool events for kids & families from 12-year-old Cool Cleveland Kids correspondent Max.

Click here to subscribe to the Cool Cleveland Kids Podcast in iTunes.

A hot selection of tech and business news & events from around the region. Got business news? Send it to: EVENTS@CoolCleveland.com

Flights from DC to CAK on hold for a while. Details here
Special video project sponsored by the Knight Center of Digital Excellence to debut at First Night! Click
Vocon Recognized by CWRU as one of the fastest-growing companies in Northeast Ohio; #44 of Weatherhead 100. Click
Sherwin-Williams buys Portugese company and details are here
University Hospitals Case Medical Center’s Hot Nosh 24/6 features hot kosher meals… from a machine? Click
Hawken Partners with Cleveland Clinic on Nutrition and you can find some of the details here
NorTech/Crains Innovation Awards are coming and the details are here
Atty. Mark L. Stolarsky’s Think Pink week for cancer research is pretty cool. Wear pink, donate a buck; forget and donate five. Click
Looking for last minute gift ideas? Shop local for the holidays. Visit http://www.ibuyneo.com to find participating locally owned businesses in your area

Potemkin Pittsburgh, perpetuated Pretty hard to defend against this one; when you read, you’ll know why. Check out this story in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review here which basically rebuts a major story in the PD here about how Pittsburgh is kicking Cleveland’s butt these days. Quotes: “The Plain Dealer story might go down in history as the most uninformed look at Pittsburgh ever written…intellectual malpractice.” Um, wow. We’ll let the two pieces speak for themselves.

SPONSORED: Jaylin is a storyteller And she needs your help. Adoption Network Cleveland is working to recruit at least 50 new adult mentors for youth in foster care by the end of 2008. A mentor termed a “permanency champion” can help a youth just like Jaylin and Michael transition to adulthood successfully, who might otherwise be alone in facing the prospect of aging out of foster care without a permanent family. To learn more about Adoption Network Cleveland’s Mentoring Program, call Julia at (216) 325-1000 or visit http://www.AdoptionNetwork.org

COSE Arts Network Education: Creative Marketing for the Arts hits on Thu 1/8 at 5:30PM at the Cle Play House. Click
Introduction to iPhone Development seminar hits Sat 1/10 at 9AM at CCC Corp College East (4400 Richmond Rd.) Prereq’s: C or Java or any OO programming bkrnd. Recommended: Macbook, Xcode (free), iPhone SDK (free) Info and enrollment
Building and Leveraging Diversity in the Nonprofit Boardroom is a BVU seminar that hits Tue 1/13 at 8:30AM. This is a seminar for nonprofit chief executives and board leaders. Click

HOT Regional Opportunities in a Tough Economy This panel discussion/lunch hits on Fri 1/16 at 11:30AM at Windows on the River. Features speakers from TeamNEO, JumpStart, Fund For Our Economic Future, Cleveland Plus and is moderated by CC creator/catalyst Thomas Mulready. Register here

Meet Yemi Akande, Ph.D.
Senior Director of Civic Education at the Cleveland Leadership Center

“Can you imagine what would happen if we could galvanize the people in this area to move this region forward?” asked Dr. Yemi Akande, Senior Director of Civic Education at the Cleveland Leadership Center. As the guest speaker this past Wednesday morning at the City Club’s New Leaders Dialogues on Leadership series, she initially appeared understated and diminutive in presence. However, her leadership expertise and competence quickly became evident to the attentive 17-member audience gathered around the conference table. Like a college professor, her former position was teaching in the communications department at John Carroll University, she offered her analysis and posed thought-provoking questions showing dire need for leadership and action in this region.

“There is a difference between managers and leaders,” she explained. “We have many managers in this area. The leaders are out there but they are risk-aversive, they are not stepping up to the plate.” She encouraged her audience to be open-minded, mindful, and respectful when engaging leaders in constructive dialogue to move this region forward. “To impact a system,” she said, “you have to work in it to effect change and to work collaboratively. We work in silos, it is endemic in all sectors, but the issue of regionalism offers a tremendous opportunity for us to become a unified community and a stronger community,” she emphasized. Akande reminded us that Cleveland is known to be one of the most racially segregated cities in this country and how we need to openly address issues of race to overcome our region’s obstacles…
Read more from Susan Schaul here

Send your cool events to: Events@CoolCleveland.com

Capturing Essence opened December 12 at the the Howson Gallery at Judson Park, featuring oil portraits of Judson residents by Cleveland Heights artist, Debbie Vail. Check it out this week; the exhibition runs through early January. 2181 Ambleside Dr. Call 791-2885 for gallery hours.

SPONSORED: Today at Noon through Midnight tomorrow, WCLV 104.9 begins its commercial-free “Christmas Festival,” highlights of which include two broadcasts by Apollo’s Fire, the Cleveland Baroque Orchestra- Christmas Vespers, tonight Wed 12/24 at 8PM, and Handel’s Messiah, tomorrow at 1PM. The late Karl Haas’ traditional Christmas Eve broadcast, The Story of the Bells will be heard tonight at 6PM. Complete details on all of WCLV’s programming available at http://www.WCLV.com. Merry Christmas to all.

HOT 1st Annual Holiday Matzoh Ball and Latke Party hits the Beachland Ballroom on Thu 12/25 (Christmas Night) at 8PM. The event is a fund raiser for Jewish Big Brothers and Sisters, but offers all religious denominations a shot to shake a tailfeather to the blues and swing sounds of Blue Lunch, Mr. Stress and Hollywood Slim. Veteran sax man (and 1958 Brooklyn, NY latke eating champion) Norman Tischler will also be on hand. Call 383-1124 or visit http://www.beachlandballroom.com.

Hard Salsa Nite hits Touch Supper Club this Fri 12/26. Enjoy a special evening of classic Hard Salsa and Latin soul with Cleveland’s own Noel Quintana and Friends along with Baila Duro’s resident DJ Frankie Flores spinning vinyl. Party starts at 10PM; band starts at 11PM. Email sobesalsa@yahoo.com or info@touchohiocity.com for more details. 2710 Lorain Rd.

HOT Peter Pan at The Beck Center for the Arts is a revelation. Real flying, top-notch costumes and choreography, plus a primo production by director Fred Sternfeld is a hit for the whole family. Thursdays thru Sundays thru Sun 1/4. 521-2540 http://www.BeckCenter.org

Carlos Jones & P.L.U.S. Band The “Jim Brown of reggae” has a 5th annual holiday jam at the House of Blues coming up Sun 12/27 and the tickets are here. Traditionally, he does his shindigs on the 26th, but Michael Stanley’s had his holiday shows already booked. Come groove that booty for the holidays w/ Jones and afro-electronique hipsters Mifune (new CD reviewed in this week’s Cool Cleveland). Speaking of CDs, word is that Jones is prepping a new CD right now! Sweet! http://mifunemusic.com. http://www.carlosjones.com.

New Year’s Eve… a day early…? Already have plans for New Year’s Eve? What about New Year’s Eve Eve? Join the Great Lakes Science Center on Tue 12/30 for an early New Year’s celebration and ring in 2009 like never before with more than 400 exhibits to choose from, two OMNIMAX films, a four-story balloon drop, and much more! 601 Erieside Ave. Score details at http://www.greatscience.com.

HOT New Year’s Eve at Crop Bistro & Bar When it comes to kickin’ out the Old and bringing on the New, nobody does it better than Steve Schimoler, innovative chef-owner of Cleveland’s award-winning Crop Bistro & Bar; and there’s no better time to sample his forward-thinking fare than Wed 12/31, when Steve presents Crop’s second annual New Year’s Eve Bash, a five-course, prix-fixe blowout. Score a long, tall glass of bubbly, then get ready for your palate to dance. For vegetarian friends, a meat-free version of the prix-fixe can be arranged, by prior request. It all happens from 5 – 10:30PM. Snag your seat now by calling 696-2767. Read Managing Editor Peter Chakerian’s interview with Schimoler in this week’s ish! Crop Bistro, 1400 W. Sixth St. http://www.cropbistro.com.

HOT Casino Royale @ 2020 Martini Lounge & Cafe Raise a glass to the coming New Year with an all-inclusive that includes a $200 Karaoke Competition, champagne toast, open bar, gourmet buffet, casino action (featuring Blackjack, Roulette, Craps and Texas Hold’em Poker), live entertainment and DJ. Singles, couples and VIP access tickets available for this shindig Wed 12/31 starting at 8:30PM. 2020 Center St. Call 776-0202 to reserve your spot(s). Space limited to 320, so act fast! Email your name(s), digits, # of people in your party to newyears@ime-mts.com. http://www.2020martini.com.

HOT First Night Akron Now in its 13th, this is a New Year’s Eve celebration unlike any other! This family-friendly, alcohol-free celebration of the New Year brings the community together to experience a brief moment in time while creating lasting New Year’s Eve memories on Wed 12/31. Entertainment and fun featuring music, dance, theater, visual and interactive arts will delight everyone throughout 18 different venues in downtown Akron! For a complete schedule of events, visit http://www.firstnightakron.org.

Starry Starry Night promises a special New Year’s Eve experience at Executive Caterers of Landerhaven Wed 12/31. Enjoy “An Out-Of-This-World Experience!” featuring the band Run Avril Run, Cosmic Cocktails (Open Top-shelf Bar), Astronomical Appetizers, Celestial-style Food Stations, Satellite Sweets and a Coffee Bar. Then launch into a Big Bang Breakfast Buffet at 1AM. Complimentary valet parking. All inclusive per-person and table rates available. Plus, special adjacent hotel rates available! 6111 Landerhaven Dr., Mayfield Hts. Call 440-449-0700 etx. 288. http://www.executivecaterers.com.

HOT Wilbert’s Big New Year’s Bash hits Wed 12/31 and features Mary Bridget Davies from Love, Janis and Big Brother and the Holding Company. Aside from a traditional champagne toast and sweet tunage, the food promises to be extraodrinary: a Prime Rib Buffet with Pork loin, stuffed tilapia, crablegs, mashed and baked potatoes, Israeli couscous, vegetables, tossed salad, rolls, desserts and more! There are other great menu options as well. Doors at 7PM; show starts at 9PM; champagne toast at Midnight! http://www.wilbertsmusic.com.

HOT Jason & the Scorchers New Year’s Eve Reunion Join the folks at the Beachland Ballroom for this very special reunion performance with special guests Stacie Collins and The Whiskey Daredevils Wed 12/31. Their special NYE package includes tickets to the concert, one Hilton Garden Inn guest room, Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame pass(es), a champagne toast at midnight and breakfast after the show. Call 383-1124. Tickets here. http://www.beachlandballroom.com.

Tropical Rhythms & Word of Mouth Promotions deliver a 2009 New Year’s Eve Party at Sunset Lounge Wed 12/31 at 8PM. Features deluxe party favors, a complimentary champagne midnight toast, valet parking, V.I.P. Tables & Bottle Service and more. Watch The Ball drop on a giant video screen and enjoy the danceable sounds of DJ Felix & DJ Majette, who will spin the best in Salsa, Top 40, Reggaeton, R&B, Hip Hop & Dance. Proper attire expected; early arrival strongly suggested. Reservations: call 535-0001. http://www.tropicalcleveland.com.

Send your cool events to: Events@CoolCleveland.com

Chef and Green-Minded Entrepreneur Steve Schimoler of Crop Bistro

Nationally recognized as an innovative chef, entrepreneur and inventor, Steve Schimoler’s resume is unlike anyone’s in town. A self-taught kitchen maestro, Schimoler opened his first restaurant, The Terrace on the Plaza in Long Island, NY, at age 23. But the driven and innovative catalyst behind the Warehouse District’s Crop Bistro didn’t stop there. In two years’ time, he had three more businesses (Loafers Bakery and Gourmet, The Terrace Too and his flagship restaurant the three-star Black Walnut) up and running in the New York area.

The road ahead went on to include becoming VP of product development for Cabot Creamery in Vermont; an accidental discovery there (incorporating liquids into butter) launched him headlong into food product development and in no time truck loads of intensely flavored butters were sold across the nation. On the other end of Schimoler telling it, everything after that has been a whirlwind — an expected byproduct of being involved in the food industry. Stints with NutraSweet, Nestle North America, SYSCO, a product development firm called Right Stuff and restoring a 200-year-old Vermont Grist Mill as the Mist Grill restaurant.

Busy? An understatement. With a slate of successes big enough for most to consider retiring, Schimoler’s taking his passion for food, green-minded entrepreneurial sense and product innovation to Cleveland at large. And he’s just getting warmed up… Read more from Peter Chakerian here

This week’s most active post on BrewedFreshDaily.com

“Discussions on the auto bailout focus on labor cost comparisons between union and non-union plants” writes Ed Morrison. “The labor rate issue should not absorb too much of our attention. It likely represents less than 1/3 of the cost difference between U.S. and Japanese manufacturers. The real challenge comes confronting the different business models followed by the US manufacturers, compared to the Japanese. Generally speaking, in a U.S. plant, contracts define job security. In a Japanese plant, job security emerges from a continuous commitment to learning. This difference explains why, in Indiana, U.S. manufacturers are in trouble, while Toyota, Subaru and Honda are not as severely damaged by the economic downturn.”

Read and add your comment on the BFD post Learning v. Contracts

Eric Mull is Cleveland Proud
Cle Photog Promotes Hometown in American Skyscraper

It might seem like Cleveland is down right now — a bleak winter started, job layoffs and the threat of more closings, and a recession that seems to hit Northeast Ohio harder than most areas. But Cleveland photographer Eric Mull is looking up. That’s because the subject of his recently published book, The American Skyscraper, is the nation’s tallest buildings. And he’s making sure Cleveland stands tall among the tallest, putting Key Tower on the cover. The Bay Village resident traveled around the country documenting these signatures of the American skyline that tower triumphantly over every major metropolis, part history, part engineering and art, and all majesty…

Read more from Vic Gideon here

Chateau Hough
(Or, How the Lowly Grape Can Save Inner-city Cleveland)

One of my dear, departed councilwoman’s favorite stories was about how, years ago, she single-handedly fought off developers who wanted to turn a part of Hough into a golf course. I call this one of “Fannie’s Favorite Fables.” Not that it wasn’t true mind you; it’s just that a lot of her stories grew a bit with each retelling… which really isn’t all that unusual, now is it?

Given Fannie’s background of fighting for what she believed was best for Ward 7, I couldn’t help but wonder what her reaction would be to the 36-page policy statement recently released by Cleveland’s City Planning Commission entitled “Re-imagining a More Sustainable Cleveland.” I haven’t read it in its entirety yet (I’ve only seen a PowerPoint excerpt) but it’s being touted as a far-reaching, wide-ranging, visionary documents, rife with possibilities of what Cleveland can look like in the near and distant future.

One thing is for sure: This time around the green/sustainability movement is going take root in America… unlike what happened in the 70s when gas prices spiked and created long lines at the pumps. That crisis created interest in conservation, but only for as long as the lines were long — just as soon as the prices went back down the lines disappeared, and so too did the concern. But not this time; in spite of the fact OPEC nations are manipulating production to drive prices down, and thereby attempt to keep us addicted to fossil fuels, this time the issue is not going to go away… Read more from Mansfield B. Frazier here

Links to interesting NEO blogs

Tell Gov Strickland we need to support the film industry in Ohio now.
Plz email Emerging Cleveland and tell them how much the tour would be missed if they quit doing it.
The first beer was poured at the Rust Belt Brewery.
Cleveland Christmas memories of Mr. Jingaling.
Searching for a job over the holidays? Read this.
Remembering what it was all about in Youngstown.

Time is Watching Us
Mifune

Swoon alert: this band makes me happy. Can’t lie about it. It’s hard not to become engulfed in the thoughtful, exquisite and sophisticated songcraft that Mifune delivers. They’re engaging, but sunny; artistically clever and intellectual but not at all pretentious. And perhaps best of all, the multi-culti sound is as fitting for an art gallery as it is a jazz or dance club, beach or backyard party. They scored some press for a Tri-C JazzFest/Tower City “wardrobe malfunction” (they wore anti-Bush t-shirts at the Fest in ’06 — yes, we all get the “boob” joke there). But thankfully, that publicity is not what they’re remembered for anymore. The follow-up to the band’s full-length debut Afro-electronique is an attractive, enticing blend of jazz pathos, Afrobeat, pop, electronic dance, funk and soul music. Time Is Watching Us incorporates all of those elements with a stronger sense of purpose and identity — not even to mention the horns. Love those horns. Highlights of the disc include “Know Your Situation,” the Afrobeat-minded “3 Hours On, 3 Hours Off,” a groovy, offbeat “Sin City” and the sassy, saxy “Joy and Revolution.” Hey, David Byrne may have seen Glenn Schwartz after his own gig here in October… but he might have missed signing his next Luaka Bop artist in the process. Two words for Byrne: too bad. Three words for you: sheer polyrhythmic bliss.

Catch Mifune as they open for Carlos Jones and the P.L.U.S. Band at the House of Blues this Sunday, December 27. Visit them online and hear samples of Watching at http://mifunemusic.com.

Wanna get reviewed? Send your band’s CD (less than 1 year old) to: Cool Cleveland, 14837 Detroit Avenue, #105, Lakewood, OH 44107

Quick reviews of recent events
Submit your own review or commentary to Events@CoolCleveland.com

Art Happenings @ Northside Arts District, Akron 12/8 Warm up this month by heading south … to Akron! In Akron’s new and trendy Northside Arts District you can view Glassblowing Demonstrations on site afternoons and even weekend nights: Tuesday — Friday 12 – 6PM and Saturday nights 6 – 11PM. After warming up by the furnace, browse the retail shop for very reasonably-priced, hand-blown pieces: vessels in swirled colors, delicate ornaments, and charming figurines of fruits and vegetables, among other alluring objects made on site by artists Jack Baker, John Boyett and guests…
Read more from Carol Drummond here

An Irish Christmas @ Severance Hall 12/18 It was a high-energy program until the very last number on the program. And then they ramped it up yet another notch! Whoo! The Irish are a feisty bunch — no doubt about it! (I’m 1/4 Irish so I can say that.) Eileen Ivers brought her Immigrant Soul band to Severance Hall for two holiday concerts with The Cleveland Orchestra. Tito Munoz was the fantastic glue who held all the disparate parts together in stylish fashion. This was especially so when the musicians were joined by four young ladies from the Burke School of Irish Dance: Adrianne LaGruth, Kate Pfriem, Caitlin Mann and Kate Tagliaferro…
Read more from Kelly Ferjutz here

Peter Pan @ Beck Center 12/19 Finally in Act 2 (of 3!), the outrageous Captain Hook, played to perfection by Michael Mauldin as a cross between The Rocky Horror Picture Show’s Frank-N-Furter and the fancy opera wags from Milos Foreman’s Amadeus, simply lifts the show into the fly space with terrific costumes by Aimee Kluiber (punk rock pirates, scottish kilts, Australian cowboys, oh boy!), showing that you can always count on a sharp, professional production from Fred Sternfeld, who directed this remarkable re-visioning of Peter Pan, with cue-perfect lighting by Michael Boll and a Peter Pan that really flies, drawing gasps from the audience, thanks to a 10-member flight crew, with the entire production given wings by inspired choreography in every scene by Martin Cespedes including a palpable sexual tension between the Lost Boys and the Indians, led by Alexis Generette Floyd as Tiger Lily, with the entire cast earning every bit of the audience’s ravishing applause. At The Beck Center through Sun 1/4. http://www.BeckCenter.org

David’s Redhaired Death @ The Bang and the Clatter 12/19 Every once in a while I leave a theatre and could care less about a show I’ve just seen. Unfortunately, that was my reaction as I wandered around the parking garage searching for my car, after seeing Bang & Clatter’s newest Cleveland theatre’s David’s Redhaired Death. The lack of emotional or cerebral involvement wasn’t totally the fault of director Sean McConaha or the acting company. It was mainly the vehicle itself. Author Sherry Kramer just didn’t create characters who I cared about, who I could empathize with, or had lives or issues that made me want to care…
Read more from Roy Berko here

A Christmas Story @ Cleveland Play House 12/20 Many Clevelanders think that A Christmas Story, whose stage version is now being produced by the Cleveland Play House, is set in Cleveland, and is written about life in the Forest City during the 1940s. In actuality, Jean Shepherd, whose books and stories the movie, and subsequently the play, was based on, sets the story in the fictional northern Indiana town of Hulman. So what’s the Cleveland connection? As legend reveals, Cleveland was chosen as the site to shoot the film because the producers needed snow and a Mid-American setting…
Read more from Roy Berko 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) Holiday Shopping Guide A fave every week since it has been listed! Local artists & entrepreneurs offering art, books, music, film, wearable art, health & wellness, fashion, sustenance & sundries. Are you hip to it yet?
CoolCleveland.com

2) The new Market Avenue Wine Bar is open for business. Check out the photos
here, then head over and have a sip

3) Chalet Toboggan Chutes are open with a 700 ft. vertical drop.
CleMetParks.com

4) It’s a Bird… It’s A Plane… It’s Zap! Pow! Bam! at the Maltz Museum!
MaltzJewishMuseum.org.

5) Steve Presser of Big Fun has his letter picked up by the influential DalilyKos, and check out all the comments!
DailyKos.com

Happy Holidays from your friendly, neighborhood Hard Corps. Many thanks to Peter Chakerian, T.L. Champion, George Nemeth, Claudia J. Taller, Kelly Ferjutz, Roy Berko, Susan Petrone, Greg Cielec, Laura Kennelly, Mansfield B. Frazier, Jeannie Fleming-Gifford, Susan Schaul, Carol Drummond, Roy Berko, Linda Eisenstein, special guest Vic Gideon and the rest of the Cool Cleveland family! This episode was brought to you by NoDoz, egg nog and polartec fleece. 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.

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