Scene December 4, 2019

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Dedicated to Free Times founder Richard H. Siegel (1935-1993) and Scene founder Richard Kabat

CONTENTS

Publisher Andrew Zelman Editor Vince Grzegorek Editorial Music Editor Jeff Niesel Senior Writer Sam Allard Staff Writer Brett Zelman Web Editor Laura Morrison Dining Editor Douglas Trattner Visual Arts Writer Dott von Schneider Copy Editor Elaine Cicora Interns Alice Koeninger

Upfront

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One word: Plastics

Feature

Advertising Senior Multimedia Account Executive John Crobar, Shayne Rose Multimedia Account Executive Kiara Davis

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30 years of AIDS activism in Akron

Creative Services Art Director/Production Manager Steve Miluch Staff Photographer Emanuel Wallace

'ET /UT

Business Sales Assistant/Receptionist Megan Stimac Controller Kristy Dotson

Stuff. To. Do

Circulation Circulation Director Don Kriss Euclid Media Group Chief Executive OfďŹ cer Andrew Zelman Chief Operating OfďŹ cers Chris Keating, Michael Wagner VP Digital Services Stacy Volhein Creative Director Tom Carlson Digital Operations Coordinator Jaime Monzon

Stage

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Get into that Christmas spirit with a Christmas tradition

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Film

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Dark Waters is one of the year’s best movies

Eat

Cleveland Scene Magazine is published every week by Euclid Media Group.

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Chicken and optimism in Central

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Music

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

UPFRONT CITY COUNCIL AMENDS KEVIN KELLEY’S BAG BAN OPT-OUT, WILL FOLLOW COUNTY TIMELINE Photo Adobestock

CLEVELAND CITY COUNCIL introduced an amendment this week to legislation that would have allowed the city to “opt out” of a county plastic bag ban, set to take effect Jan. 1.

The amendment, sponsored by councilmen Kerry McCormack and Mike Polensek, would allow the city to opt out for six months, in alignment with a planned county grace period during which no fines will be imposed. After six months, the city can either default to the county ban or enact legislation of its own.

Council president Kevin Kelley had proposed legislation earlier this month that would have delayed the ban in the city of Cleveland for two years. He claimed to want to set up a working group which would be given a year to study the issue and make recommendations to council.

Based on those recommendations, council would then have an additional year to create regulations related to plastic bags.

“I certainly understand the environmental hazards of plastic products,” said Kelley, in a statement provided to the media last week.

“But implementing a policy of this nature requires detailed community education, stakeholder buy-in and thoughtful implementation.”

For councilman Kerry McCormack and others on council, the two-year time frame was “way too long.” McCormack told Scene that the county’s six-month grace period should be sufficient for the city to conduct research and get additional feedback from the community.

The two-year time frame was interpreted by some supporters of the ban as Kelley’s attempt to give statehouse Republicans ample time to enact their statewide preemption, a law underwritten by the retail lobby. Kelley’s unilateral 11th-hour proposal becomes less confusing when understood as an intervention on behalf of the Greater Cleveland Partnership and local grocers.

McCormack said he didn’t know Kelley’s motivation, but said that true communication had been a problem between the city and the county.

Regardless, he said, there’s just not time to kick the can down the road.

“Unfortunately, the federal government is going backwards on this issue,” he said, “which is why it’s important for local communities to take bold action. This is a piece of environmental legislation — obviously there are a lot more — but we have to take bold steps to start to fight back against pollution and climate change.”

McCormack added that while he personally supported a plastic bag ban, he felt that there were important related questions — about single-use paper products, for example — which a working group could conceivably address in the next few months.

“I want to be very clear,” McCormack said. “The amendment was not to delay the ban for six

months and then opt out. This is really to work with the community and the grocers and then to implement the ban, but to help us have conversations about issues that we may not be seeing.”

The amendment enjoyed unanimous support at a council finance committee meeting Monday and was expected to pass Monday evening. McCormack said that he suspected but for the amendment, Kelley’s opt-out wouldn’t have garnered enough support for passage.

Reached by phone for comment, county councilwoman Sunny Simon said she appreciated the city’s amendment and council’s willingness to work with the county in moving the region forward and in protecting Lake Erie from the 300

million plastic bags that pollute its waters each year.

“We need to have courage,” Simon said, referencing the ban’s opponents at the statehouse and in the local business community. “We need to have backbone to make this work.

But we have to, and we have to do it now.” — Sam Allard

Proposed Ohio Abortion Ban that Includes Medically Impossible Procedure Draws Wide Scrutiny A bill proposing a total ban on abortions now before the Ohio House of Representatives has drawn media coverage from as far away as England over a provision that some say requires doctors to perform the | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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UPFRONT impossible — or potentially face murder charges.

House Bill 413 isn’t the first time conservative Ohio lawmakers have tried to ban abortions, likely in a move to trigger a battle over the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized the procedure, Roe v. Wade.

But the current legislation, sponsored by State Reps. Candice Keller and Ron Hood and supported by 19 other House Republicans, has an even more controversial element.

The bill seems to advise doctors to try and reimplant ectopic pregnancies — something medical professionals say is not possible.

Keller, who represents Middletown, has said the bill is about saving the lives of the unborn.

The legislation defines an unborn fetus as a person and levies murder charges against those who perform abortions.

“The time for regulating evil and compromise is over,” she said in a statement last month when the bill was announced. “The time has come to abolish abortion in its entirety

and recognize that each individual has the inviolable and inalienable right to life.”

Ectopic pregnancies take place when a fertilized egg attaches itself somewhere other than the usual location inside a woman’s uterus — often in the fallopian tubes or other areas. That is dangerous because the embryo attaches itself to blood supply and grows, eventually causing hemorrhaging that can lead to death. The condition causes roughly 4 percent of pregnancyrelated deaths in the U.S. The proposed law isn’t entirely clear about when doctors must attempt to reimplant into the uterus an embryo removed during procedures to treat an ectopic pregnancy, but the language seems to leave doctors who don’t try to do so at risk of “abortion murder,” a crime that would be punishable by life in prison or even a death sentence.

“A physician who does all of the following is not subject to criminal prosecution, damages in any civil action, or professional disciplinary action, for a violation of this chapter,” the law reads, listing off a number of measures a doctor should take to avoid those penalties, including taking “all possible steps

to preserve the life of the unborn child, while preserving the life of the woman. Such steps include, if applicable, attempting to reimplant an ectopic pregnancy into the woman’s uterus.”

That provision has drawn coverage from major British news site The Guardian and a number of U.S. national news sources.

This is not the first time Ohio lawmakers have attempted to tout reimplantation of an ectopic embryo.

A bill by State Rep. John Becker mentioned the possibility earlier this year. Medical professionals, however, cried foul.

“Unfortunately, an ectopic pregnancy cannot be ‘reimplanted’ into the uterus,” public health researcher at the University of California San Francisco, Dr. Daniel Grossman, tweeted earlier this year, after Becker’s bill was introduced.

“We just don’t have the technology.

So I would suggest removing this from your bill, since it’s pure science fiction.”

Keller and Hood’s bill comes after Republicans in the Ohio statehouse passed one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws earlier this year, the so-called “Heartbeat Bill,” which forbids most abortions after six weeks. A federal judge blocked

implementation of that law this summer. — Nick Swartsell

EDEN Gets Largest HUD Grant in Ohio for New Housing Vouchers The Emerald Development & Economic Network (EDEN), alongside leaders from the Cleveland HUD office, announced last week that the local nonprofit housing agency had received the largest HUD grant in the state of Ohio to provide new housing vouchers for people with disabilities, including those experiencing homelessness.

EDEN will receive 150 new vouchers to subsidize rental payments as part of the mainstream voucher program. Local HUD director Pamela Ashby presented EDEN with a ceremonial $850,000 check at the Commons at West Village in Detroit-Shoreway.

Elaine Gimmel, EDEN’s director, said that the funding is part of a recent federal allocation for the mainstream voucher program, the first such new funding since 2005. The 150 vouchers will be in addition to 175 vouchers that the organization currently administers.

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its wait list for the mainstream housing voucher program for the first time in 15 years.

(The “mainstream voucher program” is apart from the housing choice voucher program administered by CMHA, and refers specifically to housing vouchers for people with disabilities. Both vouchers are tailored to individual recipients. Those with a housing voucher pay 30 percent of their income toward rent. The voucher covers the rest. For many of the applicants in the mainstream voucher program, total income may be at, or very close to, zero.) “[This award] not only speaks to the strong work that EDEN does,” said Gimmel, in prepared remarks, “but the strong collaborations in the City of Cleveland and in Cuyahoga County.”

Gimmel said that approximately 11 percent of the county population, roughly 135,000 people, live with a disability. The vouchers, she said, are greatly needed, because they allow many of those people, especially those facing housing insecurity or homelessness, to live more independent lives.

“It’s clear that we need as much financial support and partnerships so that we may continue to meet the needs of the most vulnerable members of our community,” she said. “These 150 vouchers take us a step forward in addressing the affordable housing crisis in Northeast Ohio.”

In a conversation after the announcement, Gimmel said that 150 vouchers may not seem like a significant number, given the need that exists. However, EDEN will be required to secure leases for at least 80 percent of their new vouchers within a year, and EDEN didn’t want to take on more than they could handle.

Once the contract officially begins, EDEN will hire additional staff to administer the new vouchers. EDEN already has staff to scout potential locations — finding landlords who accept vouchers has become increasingly challenging — and those dedicated to the housing stability of their clients.

EDEN’s marketing and communications officer, Alex Lakin, read a testimonial from EDEN client Darlene, who has been living in her home on the east side for 27 years.

“I was really struggling to pay my bills, and [the voucher] really helped me to not be in a crunch,” Darlene said. “How will I pay for this? How will I pay for that? … I

like my home, and nobody really wants to move at my age. I love that I didn’t have to move.” — Allard

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Marty Keane Officially Out at Cleveland City Council Cleveland City Council ceremoniously voted to continue undermining democracy last week.

Another way to put that: Council voted to accept the resignation of Ward 17 councilman Marty Keane and the approval of Charles Slife as his replacement.

In keeping with city council’s most treasured anti-democratic tradition, Keane announced his resignation exactly two years into his term, which, by city charter, means that his selected replacement will serve the next two years and not have to run in a special election.

“Charles has the heart of service and has my full faith and support,” Councilman Keane said in a press release. “I know the people of Ward 17 will be excited to work with him.”

He knows this, of course, because the people of Ward 17 will have no other choice in the matter.

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FEATURE ‘I’M OUTLIVING EVERYONE’ Akron’s Steve Arrington on 30 years of advocacy for men with HIV

By Noor Hindi Photo by Ilenia Pezzaniti

THE YEAR IS 1977. STEVE Arrington is 25 years old when he walks into his first gay club, Hide & Seek, in Colorado Springs. The music is crisp and everything is chrome: the tables, the bar, the chairs. Red, purple and green strobe lights illuminate a dance floor where men dance with men and women dance with women.

“Oh, baby! The Hide & Seek! It was just going on. And I was like okay… okay… okay… and then I was all in!”

When Steve thinks about this memory, his eyes gleam with excitement. His voice, already loud, grows louder. His hands gesture wildly. For the 66-year-old man, this was one of the first moments in his life that made him into the proud gay man he is.

And when I say proud, I mean proud. Steve is not afraid to tell you who he is. He never whispers.

And he doesn’t believe in feeling shame about his identity, despite the societal stigma and his status as a “triple minority:” Black, gay and HIV positive.

“I didn’t have any coming out issues,” Steve says. “And I don’t care who knows. I don’t care who knows my HIV status. I don’t care who knows about me being gay. It don’t matter. Life is short. So I’m not going to live in a vacuum of how people worry and care about me.”

When Steve says “life is short,” he’s not saying it because it’s a convenient cliche. As someone who has spent more than half his life as an advocate for black men with HIV and AIDS, he’s watched countless loved ones die, each new sorrow fueling his fight against the disease.

“I have a lot of friends who are dead and gone. I mean, a list. And they were all very close to me,” he says.

Steve was diagnosed with HIV — a sexually transmitted infection that can lead to AIDS — in 1988, only a year after the ACT UP Movement (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) started, and two years before the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program of 1990. HIV/AIDS was only just starting to receive the national attention it needed to generate

money for research, awareness and education.

But black men with the diagnosis had to deal with stigma within the black community and the black gay community, all while facing racism from the larger community.

And there was Steve, newly diagnosed with “AIDS-related complex” — a term used in the early years of the AIDS epidemic to diagnose HIV — and trying to find a way to cope. Meanwhile, his partner was diagnosed with AIDS at a time when being diagnosed meant you were going to die.

Doug died on March 5, 1990.

“One day I came home and Doug was laying in bed, semi-comatose. He was sick, and I didn’t know what to do. I called 911. I called his mother.

I stayed in the hospital the whole day. I spent the night there. I’ll never forget this. I’ll never forget this for as long as I live,” says Steve. “I loved that man’s dirty drawers. I’ve been blessed that way to find people who are very loving, very protective, very embracing of me.”

Steve launched into HIV/AIDS advocacy in the two years between Doug’s diagnosis and death.

Advocacy work was not foreign to Steve, who says even as a student at Bowling Green State University, he was known as an activist. He started the first Black Student Union on campus.

“I was the one walking around

talking about how we need more black professors,” he says. “Not one black professor in this whole campus. There wasn’t even no black barbershops. There wasn’t even no black residents in the whole town.”

Steve credits much of his personality and activism to his parents, who he describes as “very direct and honest.” Steve grew up in Massillon, his father working at Republic Steel in Cleveland and his mother working as an occupational therapist. When Steve came out to them, his mother said, “Well, that’s your life. You do what you do.”

His father’s response still makes Steve laugh: “My dad told me, ‘Okay.

What else is new? You ain’t the first one!’”

After finishing his degree at Bowling Green, Steve visited Colorado Springs for a trip and was introduced to Hide & Seek before deciding to stay in Colorado. Eventually, Steve moved to Denver after being introduced to its nightlife.

“I was like ‘Ooooh! This is really good. This is where I want to be.’

They had the big, black gay clubs. It was just a different world,” he recalls.

Denver is where Steve met Doug, and where he spent the majority of his time as an activist. But in the late ’80s, Steve wasn’t aware of the powerful stigma against HIV/ AIDS that existed in the black community — and even in the black, gay community — until he visited an

AIDS service office with his friend.

During that time, being diagnosed put you on the fringes of society and made you an outcast.

“I asked the director, ‘Are there any African Americans that have HIV?’ She said, ‘Sure.’ And I said, ‘Well, I don’t see none around.’ She says, ‘They’re not here, but they’re out there.’ And I’m like … well, where are they? Why aren’t black folks walking around here? And I knew then, something’s wrong. That picture. The stigma of it is so overwhelming.”

“And [my friend’s] family lived with so much of the stigma of it that his own mother told him to tell everybody he got cancer,” Steve says. “At that time, 1989-1990, that’s what they were saying. ‘Oh. You got cancer.’”

Soon after this incident, the AIDS agency in Denver invited their clients, including Steve, to a Broadway show on tour and gave everyone free tickets. During intermission, Steve noticed other black people he knew from the city and connected the dots.

It was obvious where these people got their tickets. Suddenly, Steve was surrounded by a community that had stayed hidden for so long.

“It was like … Wow. Oh, here we are. And we started, ‘Oh, you’re here too?’ ‘I’m here too?’ So we all knew where we got the tickets from. So it became a no-brainer that all of us were a client of this agency.”

Days later, Steve invited many of | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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FEATURE those men to his house to talk about how to end the stigma.

“We sat around a dining room table saying, ‘Why isn’t this information in our black bars?’ It was nowhere,” he says. “You hear nothing about it in the black gay community.

Not at all. Within the black gay community, there was no information.

Nothing.”

That’s when Steve and his friends Raja Southall, Stanley Daughter and Roy Winbush created the Men of Color, an educational program targeted at black gay men. For about 15 years, Steve stayed in Denver, working at various mental health organizations, as well as the Urban League. There, he established his grassroots work helping fight the AIDS epidemic.

His work eventually led him back to Massillon in 1995. There he met Courtney Calhoun, founder of the Akron Brother’s Circle, which was later named the Akron AIDS Collaborative. (The Akron Brother’s Circle is currently a program under the Akron AIDS Collaborative.)

Steve moved to Akron in 1997.

Over the years, he’s continued the Men of Color Program with Murtis Taylor Human Service System in Cleveland. He’s also worked with Planned Parenthood, along with serving as the director of Akron AIDS Collaborative, where he continues to advocate for black gay men in Akron with HIV/AIDS and beyond.

But the work is never easy, and Steve’s HIV continues to take a toll on his health, both physically and mentally. Steve says dealing with symptoms of HIV while aging is difficult.

“People need to understand [that] HIV is a machine that never cuts off,” he says. “It’s running your metabolism double time, every second of every minute of every day. And you notice that. But friends are letting me know I’m outliving everybody.

And that’s why I look at my life as a calling because just about everybody I know from Denver is dead.”

Just three months ago, Steve lost his partner, Jose, of 30 years and is still grieving. When I met him in his home for our last interview, he was tired and his body was stretched out on a recliner. I asked him how he was taking care of himself. He tells me he’s done. He wants to move back to Denver and retire.

“I don’t have the zeal that I had last year,” he says. “I almost have

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

an attitude of ‘I’m done.’ I’m tired of taking medicine. I’m in a very rough place in my life. Mentally, I’m suffering from depression. I feel a little bit lost.”

Steve says he’s exhausted from trying to help people with HIV take it seriously before it’s too late. Initially, it feels like he’s being harsh, and his tone is angry and unforgiving.

“If I told you the number of people who I deal with, and how they just refuse to accept that this HIV is a part of their lives, and you can have a choice: Either you can drive the bus or let the HIV drive the bus. But if HIV drives the bus, you’re going off the cliff,” he says.

Later, it becomes clear his anger is coming from a place of deep sadness.

Toward the end of our interview, he received a phone call from a friend in Columbus — a 32-year-old man with HIV who wouldn’t take his medication and is now dying. Steve has been mentoring him for years.

“Why don’t you got a top on?

Aren’t you cold?” Steve asks the caller. “Well, did they give you how long? So they’re not going to give you no treatment? You listen to me. You give those doctors my number. And if anything happens to you … .” Steve begins to cry. “We’ll get you back here, baby.”

Steve is often the first person that men in Akron and beyond call after receiving news or needing help during a crisis. His life is a testament to how the AIDS epidemic is not over, and the work is not finished.

And though it’s often difficult, Steve continues to love.

“My purpose in life is to be loved and to love,” Steve says. “I tend to gravitate toward people who are in need or in crisis, and then I get emotionally attached to them and I love them and I want them to be happy.”

Steve has developed AIDS and is thinking about taking a medication break.

“I’m living on strength now. I’m living on God’s strength,” he says. “As long as I can do the ministry — and I call this work a ministry — there are people that need to be helped. There are people that need to be educated.

God’s gonna keep me around to do that. And when my time comes, it comes. But I’m pretty much done.

Most of my loved ones, other than my mom, have moved on.”

Originally published by The Devil Strip, this story is reprinted here with permission.

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

GET OUT everything you should do this week Photo by Emanuel Wallace

Scene’s annual Flavor event takes place at the Madison. See: Thursday.

WED

12/04

MUSIC

Chamber Music in the Galleries This monthly concert series at the Cleveland Museum of Art places young musicians from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Case Western Reserve University in the CMA galleries, for “a unique and intimate experience.” The performances often feature instruments from the museum’s keyboard collection.

Tonight’s concert begins at 6 and lasts for about an hour. Admission is free. (Jeff Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

SPOKEN WORD

Cleveland Stories Dinner Parties Cleveland Stories Dinner Party is a weekly series that pairs fine food with storytelling. Through it, the folks at Music Box Supper Club hope to raise awareness of the mission of the Western Reserve Historical Society’s Cleveland History Center.

The goal is to “bring to life some of the fun, interesting stories about Cleveland’s past — from sports, to rock ’n’ roll, to Millionaires’ Row,” as it’s put in a press release.

Admission is free, with no cover charge, although a prix fixe dinner, designed to complement the night’s theme, is $20. Tonight features

a reunion of the cast and crew of Hickory Hideout, a television program for children which was filmed in Cleveland and aired on WKYC-TV as well as nationally on NBC from 1981 to 1991. Doors open at 5 p.m., dinner is served at 6, and the storytelling starts at 7. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-242-1250, musicboxcle.com.

THEATER

Every Brilliant Thing Billed as “a surprising and immersive theatrical experience that speaks openly about depression, mental illness, and suicide,” Every Brilliant Thing focuses on a character who decides to make a list of things he thinks will rescue his mother from her depression. The Cleveland Play House presents its take on the play tonight at 7:30 at the Helen Rosenfeld Lewis Bialosky Lab Theatre, where it continues through Dec. 22. Tickets start at $20. (Niesel) 1407 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, clevelandplayhouse.com.

Richard and Zachariah Durr. The program starts at 8 p.m. sharp at the Happy Dog. The program will repeat at 5:30 p.m. on Monday at the Collinwood branch of the Cleveland Public Library. Admission to each event is free. Want to be a storyteller at a future session? See details at Facebook.com/KeepTalkingCLE. (Niesel) 5801 Detroit Ave., 216-651-9474, happydogcleveland.com.

THEATER

Mean Girls Part of the KeyBank Broadway Series, Mean Girls centers on a newbie who must navigate a high school filled with “frenemies.” Book writer Tina Fey, composer Jeff Richmond, lyricist Nell Benjamin and director Casey Nicholaw collaborated on this musical that’s based on the movie of the same name. Tonight’s show takes place at 7:30 p.m. at Connor Palace, where performances continue through Dec. 22. Tickets start at $10. (Niesel) 1615 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

SPOKEN WORD

Keep Talking Keep Talking is a monthly storytellers’ series that offers attendees the chance to grab a drink and a dog while listening to some of their Cleveland neighbors tell tall tales. Tonight’s show features the best of 2019. The hosts are Adam

THU

12/05

FILM

American Factory and The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant A three-time Oscar nominee

who lives in the Dayton area, Julia Reichert is Ohio’s foremost nonfiction filmmaker. Julia Reichert: 50 Years in Film, a traveling retrospective that has come to the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, features screenings of restored versions of her films. Today at 6:45 p.m., the Cinematheque shows her most recent film, American Factory. Tickets cost $10, or $7 for Cinematheque members and students. Then, at 9 p.m., the cinematheque shows her 2009 flick The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant. Admission to that screening is free, but donations are requested.

(Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

THEATER

A Christmas Carol The Great Lakes Theater’s annual production of this Charles Dickens’ classic returns to Playhouse Square tonight as it does each year at this time. The story about how a certain Scrooge comes to realize that he needs to embrace the holiday season has proven to be a timeless tale.

Tonight’s performance takes place at 7:30 at the Ohio Theatre, where it continues through Dec. 22. Tickets are $28 to $75. (Niesel) 1501 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, greatlakestheater.org. | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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GET OUT THEATER

A Christmas Story The Cleveland Play House’s production of Jean Shepherd’s beloved Christmas Story returns, as it does each holiday season, to the Allen Theatre. See it tonight at 7:30.

Performances continue through Dec. 23. Tickets are $20 to $97.

(Christine Howey) 1407 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, clevelandplayhouse.com.

the jubilation felt around the country after the ratification of the 21st Amendment put a stop to Prohibition and ended a 13-year “noble experiment” that criminalized the production, sale and transport of alcohol. From 4 p.m. to midnight today, Prosperity Social Club will commemorate the event with a party that extends into the weekend. The

DANCE

The Nutcracker Tonight at the Hanna Theatre, the Cleveland Ballet takes on The Nutcracker, a ballet in two acts that tells the classic story of how a young woman’s favorite Christmas toy comes to life and takes her on a fantastic trip through a magical kingdom. Tonight’s performance

MUSIC

Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty Tchaikovsky himself thought Sleeping Beauty was one of his best works, and Stravinsky would call it a “convincing example” of Tchaikovsky’s creativity. Tonight at 7:30 at Severance Hall, the Cleveland Orchestra will perform selections from it along with pieces by SaintSaëns and Belioz. Performances continue through Saturday. Consult the orchestra website for times and ticket prices. (Niesel) 11001 Euclid Ave., 216-231-1111, clevelandorchestra.com.

CIRCUS

FOOD

Flavor Scene’s annual culinary event, Flavor celebrates the local food scene by bringing together leading Cleveland restaurants. There will also be select beer, wine and cocktails. Proceeds go toward Food Strong, a local organization whose mission is to “empower and strengthen communities around food.” The event starts at 7 p.m. at the Madison, and tickets cost $40 in advance, or $50 at the door. Find all the details on the website. (Niesel) 4601 Payne Ave., sceneflavor.com.

COMEDY

Photo by Paul Bergen/Redferns/Getty Images

Cirque Musica Presents Holiday Wishes A full symphony orchestra will be on hand for tonight’s special holiday performance by Cirque Musica.

The show will include acrobats, aerialists, hilarious high jinks and holiday cheer as it “blends the spellbinding grace and daredevil athleticism of today’s greatest circus performers with the sensory majesty of a symphony orchestra.” The performance begins at 7 p.m. at the State Theatre. Tickets cost $25 to $175. (Niesel) 1519 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

PLAY IT LOUD celebrates instruments that are as iconic as the musicians who played them. Revel in these striking sound machines, explore how they defined the artist’s sound & elevated their identity, and witness the wild aftermath of the ultimate rock gesture, smashing guitars.

Co-organized with the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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Guy Torry Comedian Guy Torry likes to joke that he used to get kicked out of class for telling the kind of jokes that he now gets paid to tell on TV. His material ranges from talking about the “stand-in-line-rage” he experiences when he goes to the bank, to the generational differences he sees in the world of sports (“You don’t see any black players in baseball anymore — too many games!”). All the while, he delivers his narrative-based jokes with frenetic energy. He performs tonight at 7:30 at the Improv, where he has shows scheduled through Saturday.

Tickets are $17 to $20. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-696-IMPROV, clevelandimprov.com.

FILM

ENJOY EXTENDED HOURS

THANKSGIVING WEEKEND

FUNDRAISER

Hounds at the Hollar The Rescue Inn is an Ohio nonprofit, foster-based rescue organization that aims to save dogs from high-kill shelters and abuse/neglect situations and place them into loving and permanent homes. The organization promotes responsible animal ownership and provides medical treatment, foster care and training.

Tonight’s special event will benefit the group. It takes place at 6:30 at Hatfield’s Good Grub. There will be barbecue, and the Thor Platter Band will perform. Tickets cost $40; learn more on the website. (Niesel) 16700 Lorain Ave., therescueinn.com.

vegetable egg roll with Thai dipping sauce, and city chicken with braised red cabbage and homemade mashed potatoes. Admission is free, but reservations are recommended. Erainspired costumes — rum runners, teetotalers, movie stars, gumshoes, etc. — are welcomed. (Niesel) 1109 Starkweather Ave., 216-937-1938, prosperitysocialclub.com.

Friday the 29th & Saturday the 30th | 10AM - 9PM

1100 Rock and Roll Blvd • 216.781.7625 • rockhall.com begins at 7 p.m.; additional performances continue through Dec. 15. Tickets are $25 to $79; get them on the website. (Niesel) 2067 East 14th St., 216-241-6000, clevelandballet.org.

FOOD + DRINK

Prohibition Repeal Party We weren’t alive in December of 1933, but we can only imagine

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

Tremont restaurant and bar will feature Prohibition-era-inspired food and drink specials. The opening night party includes a Hooch Happy Hour that includes $2 off speakeasy drinks. The local blues and jazz act Hollywood Slim will perform from 7 to 9 tonight as well. Themed weekend food specials include creamy chicken a la king served over a fluffy biscuit, a crispy

Warren Miller Presents Line of Descent The release of a new Warren Miller Entertainment ski film signals the start of ski season as much as anything. Tonight at 7, the Capitol Theatre will screen Warren Miller Presents Line of Descent, his latest flick featuring skiers performing death-defying stunts. The film features skiers such as Glen Plake, Caite Zeliff, Jaelin Kauf and Baker Boyd. Tickets are $17 to $18. (Niesel) 1390 West 65th St., 216-651-7295, clevelandcinemas.com.

FAMILY FUN

The Wild Winter Lights Festival The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo has brought back its holiday light event that was discontinued after the 2004 season. The zoo has reworked

the bright spectacle to include thousands of lights, a visit from Santa, an extremely tall teddy bear and, of course, plenty of animals.

Dubbed the Wild Winter Lights festival, the event takes place today through Sunday from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.; additional select dates, through Jan. 5, are listed on the website. Tickets start at $18.50 for those who aren’t members of the zoo and $15.50 for members. Find out more about the event and buy tickets on the website. (Laura Morrison) 3900 Wildlife Way, 216-661-6500, clemetzoo.com.

FRI

12/06

FILM

American Dharma Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Errol Morris turns his attention to Steve Bannon — the former naval officer and banker who’s become a right-wing journalist (of sorts) and White House advisor — in his latest film, American Dharma.

The film makes its Cleveland debut tonight at 7 at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, where it screens again at 8:20 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets cost $10, or $7 for Cinematheque members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

ART

BAYarts Exhibition: The heART of Cleveland Curator and local artist Scott Kraynak brings The heART of Cleveland, an exhibit loosely based on the book of the same name released last year, to BAYarts. The show will expand on the book’s initial goal of celebrating not only all of the great art and artists born in our fair city but also marking the many features that make Cleveland such an amazing place. Art and artists from the book will be showcased, and other local artists will display their work as well. This exhibit promises to represent “the amazing diversity of talent born and bred right here.”

Tonight’s opening reception takes place from 7 to 9. Admission is free.

(Niesel) 28795 Lake Rd., Bay Village, 440-871-6543, bayarts.net.

THEATER

Big Fish The critically acclaimed movieturned-musical, Big Fish is the current production in the Near West Theatre’s Season of Discovery series. Based on the Daniel Wallace

novel and the film directed by Tim Burton, Big Fish centers on parents and their children as well as “the tales we use to define ourselves and those we leave behind as our legacy.”

Music is directed by Jordan Cooper and choreography is led by Katie Gibson. The musical runs weekends through Dec. 15. Tickets are as little as $10 for adults and $8 for children. Reserved Star Seat tickets are $25. (Niesel) 6702 Detroit Rd., 216-961-6391, nearwesttheatre.org.

COMEDY

Frank Caliendo Donald Trump, Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Bill Clinton are only a few of the many incredible impressions that Frank Caliendo has mastered.

He is a comedic genius when it comes to impersonations, somehow capturing the exact voice, body language, and facial expressions of each character he performs. His ability to effortlessly switch from one character to the next keeps the audience mesmerized. Caliendo will perform tonight at 8 at MGM Northfield Park – Center Stage.

Tickets are $45 and $55.

(Hannah Borison) 10705 Northfield Rd., Northfield, 330-908-7793, mgmnorthfieldpark. mgmresorts.com.

SPORTS

Cavs vs. Orlando Magic In Aaron Gordon, the Orlando Magic have one of the league’s most dynamic players. The guy is a true dunk artist, and he brings the Magic to town tonight for a game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse against the Cavs. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.

Consult the Cavs’ website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, rocketmortgagefieldhouse.com.

SHOPPING

Holiday Market on the Farm This annual celebration of the arts features 22 local makers, a cafe takeover by Hofbrauhaus Cleveland, and an Ohio wine and beer tasting.

Held in the Gatehouse Welcome Center and new Mary Jane Davis Hartwell Community Room at Hale Farm & Village, the event will feature jewelry artists, candle makers, carvers, glass artists, soap and lotion makers, and a variety of unique fine craft artists. There will also be live music and a book signing by local authors. The event takes place from 4 to 8 p.m. It’s free.

(Niesel) 2686 Oak Hill Rd., Bath, 330-666-3711, halefarm.org. | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

17

GET OUT ART

Mix: Icon The first Friday of each month, the Cleveland Museum of Art hosts its popular Mix at CMA event. The museum stays open later than normal for the occasion, which features dance, drink and a themebased program. Tonight’s event celebrates iconic artists and culture.

DJ Eso will man the wheels of steel.

Tickets are $10 in advance, or $15 at the door. CMA members get in for free. The party runs from 6 to 10 p.m. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

FAMILY FUN

Scuba Claus The Greater Cleveland Aquarium’s annual Scuba Claus event continues this weekend. Guests can talk to Scuba Claus while he’s in one of the exhibits and ask a question about diving or suggest gifts for the fish.

Guests can also takes photos with Scuba Claus. Kids can also craft animal-themed snowflakes and take part in a cold weather trivia challenge for a chance to win an aquarium package valued at $200.

In addition, the animal care team will present holiday- and coldweather-themed feeding enrichment activities. Children visiting on Scuba Claus appearance days also receive an original holiday mini activity book and a Scuba Claus temporary tattoo, while supplies last. Check the aquarium website for hours and ticket prices. The event continues on select dates through Dec. 24. (Niesel) 2000 Sycamore St., 216-862-8803, greaterclevelandaquarium.com.

HOLIDAY FUN

Uptown WinterFest 2019 WinterFest 2019, a new holiday event that takes place today from 5 to 10 p.m. at Toby’s Plaza in University Circle, will feature a wide range of winter activities. There will be outdoor fires, s’mores making, ice carving demos, gingerbread decorating, a hot chocolate and coffee bar, live music, photos with “holiday characters” and winter games. Admission is free. (Niesel) 11440 Uptown Ave., universitycircle.org.

FILM

Varda by Agnes Varda by Agnes, the latest film from the late French new-wave director Agnes Varda, provides a tour

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through the auteur’s 60-year career, complete with photos and film clips.

It screens at 9 tonight and at 4 p.m. on Sunday at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque. Tickets cost $10, or $7 for Cinematheque members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

FILM

What You Gonna Do When the World’s on Fire?

Roberto Minervini directed this impressionistic black-and-white film about American race relations. The movie includes interviews with a community of black people living in the South during the summer of 2017 when a string of killings of young African-American men made national headlines. The film makes its Cleveland premiere tonight at 6:45 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Tickets cost $10, or $7 for CMA members. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

SAT

12/07

FILM

The Big Lebowski Released in 1998, the Coen Brothers’ flick The Big Lebowski has become a cult classic that regularly makes appearances in the Cedar Lee Theatre’s Late Shift film series.

The plot centers on the Dude (Jeff Bridges), a slacker/bowler who becomes the victim of mistaken identity when he is assaulted. The movie features a slew of cameos by actors such as John Turturro, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Elliott, Tara Reid and David Thewlis. It screens tonight at 9:30 and midnight and tomorrow night at 7 at the Cedar Lee Theatre. Tickets cost $6. (Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas.com.

COMEDY

Andy Borowitz A best-selling author, awardwinning comedian and a star of the PBS series Retro Report, Andy Borowitz is a true Renaissance man.

The creator of the satirical “The Borowitz Report,” one of the most popular features of The New Yorker magazine, Borowitz brings his Make America Not Embarrassing Again tour to town tonight. He performs at 8 at the State Theatre. Tickets cost $35 to $150. (Niesel) 1519 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

FILM

Rocky Horror Picture Show It’s the first Saturday of the month again, so tonight the Cedar Lee Theatre hosts its usual midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the 1975 cult classic that still draws an exuberant, costumed crowd that likes to throw rice and dry toast and sing along to the songs in the movie. In addition, locals act out a floor show that mimics the movie, turning the event into a veritable party. Tickets are $9.75. (Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas.com.

SUN

12/08

SPORTS

Browns vs. Cincinnati Bengals After a particularly tough stretch that found the Browns playing teams such as the Seattle Seahawks, the San Francisco 49ers and the New England Patriots, the team gets a break today in the form of the winless Cincinnati Bengals.

The Bengals are so bad that most of their games have been blowouts this season. Expect the Browns to come away with a win when the two teams face off at 1 today at FirstEnergy Stadium. Consult the Browns’ site for ticket prices. (Niesel) 100 Alfred Lerner Way, 440-891-5000, clevelandbrowns.com.

FOOD + MUSIC

Gospel Brunch The monthly Gospel Brunch has been a spiritual Sunday staple for years at the House of Blues. The recently reinvigorated show puts a bit more emphasis on the music.

As for the food, the all-you-caneat musical extravaganza features Southern classics like chicken jambalaya, biscuits and gravy, and chicken and waffles. Seatings are available today at 10 a.m.

Detrich Burgess & Company will perform. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased online, by phone or at the box office. (Niesel) 308 Euclid Ave., 216-523-2583, houseofblues.com.

COMEDY

Gary Gulman In a routine he delivered on Conan, comedian Gary Gulman talked about seeing a documentary film about how the states first received their abbreviations. He explains how the post office assembled “a crack squad of abbreviators” to take all 50 states down to two letters. His funny account of the film shows off his

astute storytelling abilities. Gulman performs tonight at 7 at Hilarities.

Consult the website for ticket prices and more info. (Niesel) 2035 East Fourth St., 216-241-7425, pickwickandfrolic.com.

HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS

Holiday Circlefest The annual Holiday CircleFest, which takes place today from 1 to 7 p.m. at University Circle, includes activities at more than a dozen of the cultural district’s museums, gardens, galleries, churches and schools. The venues will feature music, food, fun, and shopping.

Outdoors on Wade Oval there will be ice skating at the Rink, ice-carving demos, horse-drawn carriage rides and other activities. The Cleveland Museum of Art hosts a Winter Lights Lantern Procession at 5:30 p.m. The event is free, although some venues may charge a small admission. (Niesel) universitycircle.org.

FILM

The Idiot Director Akira Kurosawa takes on Dostoevsky’s tale of a saintly prince and his love for a kept woman in the 1951 film The Idiot. Kurosawa sets the movie in postwar Japan, and it stars Masayuki Mori, Setsuko Hara, Toshiro Mifune, and Takashi Shimura. It screens today at 1:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Art as part of the museum’s Overlooked Kurosawa series. Tickets cost $10, or $7 for CMA members. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

FILM + MUSIC + JESUS CHRIST

Jesus Christ Superstar Sing-Along Ted Neeley, the actor who stars as Jesus in the 1973 movie Jesus Christ Superstar, will be on hand tonight when the Cedar Lee Theatre hosts a special singalong screening. Neeley will introduce the movie and provide behind-the-scenes stories about the making of the flick. He’ll also take questions from the audience. The screening features an all-new, digital European restoration that’s never been shown before in Cleveland.

Neeley was nominated for two Golden Globes for his starring role in the movie; he also starred in the original Broadway production and has reprised the role in acclaimed revivals all around the world. A VIP reception will be held before the film; fans can meet with Neeley for photos and autographs.

General admission tickets are

$15 and can be purchased online or at the Cedar Lee box office. VIP tickets are $175 and available only at tedneeley.com. (Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas.com.

BURLESQUE

Toxic Burlesque Over the past few years, the folks at the local burlesque promotion company Toxic Burlesque have thrown a number of events at Brothers Lounge. According to promoter Frank Ian, who runs the company with his wife, there’s been a “packed house every time.”

Tonight’s theme is 12 Teases of the Season, and Carmen M’Knoxide, Ms. Fever Blister, Lakota Shekhar, Bee Awkward, Kaydence Jayne and Samantha Echo will deliver holiday-themed performances. The show begins at 7 p.m., and tickets are $15. (Niesel) 11609 Detroit Ave., 216-226-2767, brotherslounge.com.

ART

Zelos ‘Devotion to What You Love’

By No Numbers A series of photographs encompassing local photographer No Numbers’ vision of love, Zelos ‘Devotion to What You Love’ opens today from 2 to 7 p.m. at the Bop Stop. No Numbers is the artistic name for Arron Bound, staff photographer for the 2019 Cleveland Photo Fest.

Today’s performers and the pieces are a reflection of the artist’s understanding of love. Performances exemplify the “zeal that promotes and protects love.” For the reception, two poets have been matched with two musicians to emphasize the uniqueness of the individual poets’ message. Te’Erra “Ladee Pe3t” Jones will perform with saxophonist Alex Henry and poet Mo Grays with guitarist Anthony Hitch. Additionally, there will be two musical performances by Nais Nechama Isreal and Apostle Jones Band. The whole event will be livestreamed and professionally recorded. (Niesel) 2920 Detroit Ave., 216-771-6551, themusicsettlement.org.

MON

12/09

MUSIC

Baldwin Wallace Musical Theatre ‘Now and Then’ Tonight at 7:30 at Nighttown, the Baldwin Wallace Music Theatre Class of 2021 will present excerpts from the Broadway musicals Guys

& Dolls and Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812. Over the years, Baldwin Wallace grads have gotten lead roles on Broadway and elsewhere. Baldwin Wallace’s music theater program was recently ranked as the top music theater program in the country. Tickets cost $10. (Niesel) 12387 Cedar Rd., Cleveland Heights, 216-795-0550, nighttowncleveland.com.

PRESENTS

SPOKEN WORD

Science Cafe The second Monday of each month, Music Box Supper Club hosts Science Cafe, an informal lecture series that brings scientists from throughout the region to the club so they can talk about science topics. Tonight at 7, Andrea Waksmunski and Jonathan Haines from the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at Case Western Reserve University will speak about electric propulsion as an emerging new paradigm for space propulsion. Admission is free. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-242-1250, musicboxcle.com.

TUE

12/10

MUSIC

The 11th Annual Ryan Humbert Holiday Extravaganza The 11th annual Ryan Humbert Holiday Extravaganza, a benefit for the Akron Canton Regional Foodbank, returns to the Akron Civic Theatre today. The special performances will feature Humbert’s terrific honky-tonk band the Shootouts as well as alt-country group the HawtThorns and local singer-songwriter Gretchen Pleuss.

A different surprise guest will appear at each performance. This year’s show will feature a blend of holiday classics and songs from the Shootouts’ debut album Quick Draw, which spent over nine weeks on the Americana Radio Album Chart this past summer.

During each performance, the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank will collect non-perishable food donations. Tickets are $20 for general admission or $35 for two (date-night special). Performances continue through Dec. 12. (Niesel) 182 South Main St., Akron, 330-253-2488, akroncivic.com.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

CLEVELAND C AP ITO L THEATRE DE C. 5 AT 7:00PM

OFF E R S TO TH E SE R E S O R TS :

GET TICKETS ! I T’ S TRA D I TI O N!

WAR R E N M I L L E R .CO M | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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STAGE HOLLY? JOLLY? BAH, HUMBUG! Great Lakes Theater’s A Christmas Carol glistens with holiday cheer

by Roman Macharoni AS HOLIDAY TRADITIONS GROW scarcer and scarcer, it’s nice to know that one has stayed constant. For 31 years, Great Lakes Theater has been proud to present A Christmas Carol to folks looking for that nostalgic Christmas feel from the beloved Charles Dickens novel, adapted for the stage by Gerald Freedman.

It’s safe to say that we’re all familiar with the tale: Ebenezer Scrooge (Lynn Robert Berg), a name synonymous with greed and wealth, lives his life in a way that can be politely described as callus and lacking in empathy. The only thing necessary for him to change his ways is a spiritual intervention, through a haunting visit of his deceased business partner, Jacob Marley (David Anthony Smith) and subsequent visits from the ghosts of Christmas Past (Patrick John Kiernan), Present (Leilani Barrett) and Future (also Kiernan). As his life flashes before his eyes and the future looks ever so bleak should he continue his habits, Scrooge is forced to contemplate his life choices.

This adaptation, also directed

by Freedman, is told through the narrative lens of a family enjoying a bedtime reading of the novel on Christmas Eve. As the mother (Laura Welsh Berg) reads passages of the novel to drive the story forward, her youngest, Master William (Ian McLaughlin and Avery Pyo), often stands in the background as if he is witnessing the novel unfold within his imagination. In a Wizard of Ozstyle metaphor, the uptight caretaker of the home, Samuels, is also played

by Lynn Robert Berg.

Along with the dialogue, the word-for-word recital showcases Dicken’s antiquated vernacular, which — compared with modern interpretations — feels almost Shakespearean. Dicken’s mastery of luxurious linguistic patterns is placed front and center, with a cheesy old English cadence by most — there are clear exceptions which are more palatable — of the cast for good measure.

Speaking of the cast, the ensemble is massive, which gives the musical numbers a robust energy. One negative, however, is the visible

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Photo by Roger Mastroianni

God bless us, every one: Part of A Christmas Carol’s large ensemble cast.

overuse of shared roles within the ensemble. In more crowded sequences, character changes are frequent enough that the whereabouts of some characters and the ability to distinguish them is unimportant. This doesn’t discredit the work of the performers, who maintain an approachable, get-upand-go attitude.

the most memorable male vocalist, one could argue for Kiernan, whose clear delivery is one of the few discernible in ensemble songs in his other role as a lone corner-of-thestreet singer.

Credit is also due to Nick Steen, in his dual role as Scrooge’s whipping boy and business associate, Bob Cratchit, and the father in the

A CHRISTMAS CAROL THROUGH DEC. 22 THE MIMI OHIO THEATRE, 1511 EUCLID AVE., 216-241-6000 GREATLAKESTHEATER.ORG.

In his fourth year as Scrooge with Great Lakes, Lynn Robert Berg gives a refreshingly controlled performance rather than an outright caricature, with an accent not too thick and an oral posture that speaks to his experience on stage.

In comparison, Barrett — in his debut season with Great Lakes — showcases his warm, powerful voice and charm.

With some deliberation, Laura Welsh Berg can be considered to be the best female vocalist within the cast, with a commanding yet easy-going voice that pairs well with everyone else in the ensemble. As for

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

family narrative scenes. Steen’s smile fills the stage with a pleasant ambiance and he nails the tropes of the downtrodden yet optimistic character incredibly well. Similarly, Daniel Millhouse’s performance as a younger Scrooge and nephew Fred injects the production with a youthful vigor and unabashed exuberance.

Every element immerses the audience in the experience, from the pre-requisite elaborate costumes

by James Scott to the crafty sound design by Tom Mardikes and Stan Kozak, wherein echoes, off-stage dialogue and booming re-recorded

lines are injected to spice up the narrative. In addition, the costume department adds some pizzazz with the stilt-assisted Christmas Present costume and Marley’s chain-lined suit, which assisted by the sound department’s effects catalog makes one of the most impressive practical effects.

The scenic design by John Ezell and Gene Freedman is larger than life, with meticulous bannisters, revolving set pieces and a visually astounding moving clock that drops down periodically between the spirits’ arrivals in Scrooge’s home.

Another notable signature set piece is a split false wall that remains just as impressive toward the end as the first time it cracks open. In turn, props are also second-to-none and time-tested with the years of use on stage.

Complementing this is some rather cinematic, stark lighting by design team Mary Jo Dondlinger, Jeff Herrmann and Cynthia Stillings. The mood and lighting changes quickly throughout the various montages and locations, but it is the sulky greens and higher contrasts that stand out, accompanied by a healthy dose of smoke and strobe lights.

Overall, it’s difficult to find a more faithful adaptation of the classic novel, creating a spectacle out of one crotchety old man’s road to redemption with humor, dynamic performances and an uplifting moral center perfect for families.

In a world where picky spectators complain that “the book was better,” this production lives and breathes the influential words of that timeless holiday classic — leaving even the nitpickers with little room for complaint. With magnificent set pieces, a majestic presentation inside the opulent Ohio Theatre and a charm seldom repeated by modern holiday media, A Christmas Carol is still an excellent option to ring in the Christmas season.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

MOVIES THE LITTLE GUY Dark Waters is one of year’s best

By Sam Allard PERHAPS IT’S THE FAMILIAR tones: the serious subject matter, the wintry color palette, the central conflict adapted from an astounding piece of journalism. Or perhaps it’s Mark Ruffalo, himself. But whatever the reason, Dark Waters, the new drama from director Todd Haynes about a corporate defense attorney who takes on DuPont on behalf of a West Virginia farming town, feels like this year’s Spotlight. It opens Friday areawide.

In 2016’s Best Picture winner, Ruffalo played one of the reporters at the Boston Globe investigating child abuse by priests. And he delivered the film’s most indignant speech.

“It’s time!” he shouted at his editor (Michael Keaton) late in the film.

“We have to nail these scumbags. We have to show people that nobody can get away with this. Not a priest or a cardinal or a freaking pope.”

It’s impossible not to think of that moment in multiple scenes throughout Dark Waters, when Ruffalo, playing lawyer Robert Billot, learns the extent of the chemical giant DuPont’s unregulated activities and, just like in Spotlight, the degree to which DuPont’s leaders knew what they were doing, but continued doing it anyway.

“The system is rigged!” he tells

Photo courtesy of Focus Features

his wife (Anne Hathaway) in a late scene. “They want us to think it’ll protect us. But we protect us. We do.”

Ruffalo is phenomenal as the unlikely hero. He’s a hard-working attorney in Cincinnati who’s bashful about his roots. He tries to downplay his West Virginian connections early on to his managing partner (Tim Robbins). But even as he defends large chemical corporations, he has

a soft spot for the downtrodden.

(Perhaps it’s his Catholicism?) And when a brash farmer (Bill Camp) arrives at his office one day with a box full of videotapes, Billot can’t resist looking into the case.

What begins as a “small legal matter” to help a guy in need becomes a vast, seemingly eternal lawsuit defending thousands of individuals poisoned by the

DuPont facility in West Virginia where Teflon was created and manufactured.

The lawsuit’s length and cost both wear on Billot, whose singular focus on the case strains his marriage and his professional relationships. The unlimited resources of a corporation like DuPont make the legal battle a true David-vs.-Goliath tale. Ruffalo, whose real-life anti-capitalist convictions are voiced through Billot, revels in this sort of heroism: not the smirking and smashing of Incredible Hulk, but the simple act of believing someone when no one else will; of looking at documents and uncovering grotesque abuses of power; of pointing fingers and naming names, even at immense personal risk.

Todd Haynes (Far From Heaven, Carol) directs the hell out of his cast and creates a cinematic experience rich in visual and narrative pleasure even as it conveys a true story. Those interested can read the 2016 article on which the film is based, “The Lawyer Who Became DuPont’s Worst Nightmare,” in The New York Times.

sallard@clevescene.com t@scenesallard

SPOTLIGHT: HONEY BOY THE MERCURIAL FORMER CHILD star Shia LaBeouf (Even Steven, Transformers), who wrote what became the script for Honey Boy while in rehab, has dealt with no shortage of negative publicity. Prone to vile outbursts and drunken misbehavior, LaBeouf was for many years a cautionary tale about peaking in Hollywood too soon. At best, he had become a wide-eyed, hard-clapping meme.

It was in 2017 that he accosted a plainclothes police officer while intoxicated and landed in rehab. It was there that he confronted his past honestly for the first time. He was told, for example, that he was suffering from PTSD. LaBeouf happened to have been on set for The Peanut Butter Falcon, which

came out this summer and would have done wonders for LaBeouf’s image even without Honey Boy. But Honey Boy, directed brilliantly by documentarian/professor/music video alum/LaBeouf personal friend Alma Har’el, is a biopic unlike any you’ve ever seen. It’s by no means the best, but the unblinking honesty with which it treats its subjects, and LaBeouf’s tour de force performance, are plaudits enough to make Honey Boy a candidate for awards-season chatter.

The film expands to select area theaters Friday, and moviegoers can expect an earnest and sometimes impressionistic tale about a father and son. Starring Lucas Hedges as LaBeouf’s alter-ego Otis Lort at 22; Noah Jupe as 12-year-old Otis;

and LaBeouf as Otis’ father James, the film follows the older Otis as he makes his way through rehab, slowly coming to terms with the various traumas of his California upbringing, while showing extended fragments of that upbringing in parallel.

Har’el has said in interviews that the ultimate product only captured about 5 percent of what LaBeouf wrote in therapy, and that the film spared viewers from the most violent episodes so as not to fetishize the actor’s pain. Whether as a result of that decision or not, the film packs a powerful punch, and avoids what might have been an overindulgent or even trollish autobiographical narrative.

All three leads are sensational

in their own rights. LaBeouf goes for broke playing a role that no one knows better than he does. And Hedges, astonishingly, captures the pace and cadence of LeBeouf at his most aggressive.

The young Jupe, who also stars as the son of Christian Bale in Ford V Ferrari, is a rising child star himself, and turns in one of the more memorable performances by a young actor in recent years.

Directors and screenwriters could learn a great deal about economical visual storytelling from the film’s spectacular opening five minutes.

— Allard

sallard@clevescene.com t@scenesallard | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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For events, reservations, gift cards, sales and more vist our website.

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

EAT KEEP IT SIMPLE The Crispy Chick turns out dynamite tenders and positive role models in Central

By Zachary Schwartz Photo by Emanuel Wallace

IN THE ACCLAIMED 2012 documentary, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, sushi chef Jiro Ono reflected on how he became one of the best in the world: Over time, he pared away appetizers and other distractions from his true love — sushi. His philosophy and methods embody the tenets of Japanese cooking: cleanliness, minimalism, using only a few ingredients but using and preparing them right. “Ultimate simplicity leads to purity,” Jiro says.

You can find a similar ethos on Woodland Avenue in the Central neighborhood at the Crispy Chick, a new fast-food restaurant that serves only one entree: chicken tenders.

They are some of the best tenders you’ll have the pleasure of enjoying in Cleveland. They arrive fresh and hot on a bed of crinkle-cut fries accompanied by coleslaw, toasted garlic bread and a soft drink. Made without additives, the tenders are light as tempura but comforting as a fairground memory. Their “ultimate simplicity” — Crispy Chick’s owner, Senayt Fekadu, seasons them with fewer than five ingredients — is inspired by Fekadu’s travels to Japan and her previous restaurant, Shoga.

Fekadu operated Shoga, a hibachi express restaurant, out of the Crispy Chick’s building from late 2016 to the summer of 2018. “There wasn’t really a healthy alternative in a neighborhood like that,” Fekadu says. “I wanted to start an Asian concept with no MSG, fresh ingredients, everything made to order.”

Shoga’s wok-fired concept relied on too many moving parts to sustain the menu in the long term, but Fekadu noticed exceptional customer demand for their Korean-style fried wings. She decided to pivot to serving poultry. “I thought if I’m going to do a fried food concept, I still want to stick to being healthy and a good alternative. I saw that chicken tenders, which are cut from underneath the breast, are healthier than anything with a skin on it,” she says.

Fekadu spent months working with a local supplier, Hillcrest Food Service, to find her preferred cut of tender. She experimented with 17

individual recipes before settling on the one she liked and opening Crispy Chick in October of this year.

Currently, Crispy Chick offers just a few variations, including a three-piece sandwich ($6.49), a fourpiece entree ($6.98), and a six-piece mega meal ($10.98). Each meal is made to order, so there can be a little wait, especially at peak times. But the tenders come out piping hot,

and colleagues to raise prices. But Fekadu — an Eritrean immigrant who paid her way through college and experienced past success owning an accounting business and a Little Caesar’s franchise — has bigger dreams than pure profit. “It’s not just about the money,” she says. “To me, it’s about providing quality food at a good price, it’s about employing local kids in the area. I want the kids to

CRISPY CHICK 5618 WOODLAND AVE., 216-331-4700 THECRISPYCHICK.COM

with crispy ridges, flecks of pepper and salt, and a pleasant amber hue.

Though Crispy Chick’s tenders are healthier than most, they lose none of their punching power.

Paying less than $7 for an ample meal that might cost more elsewhere is certainly a steal. Fekadu has faced pressure from her suppliers

see somebody that looks like them owning a business, working open to close. I’m trying to show them what it takes to succeed.”

Luckily, business has been booming thus far. At any time on any day, one is likely to see a wide array of customers at the restaurant: working adults, neighborhood kids, obvious

suburbanites, and Fekadu herself, charming repeat diners, inspecting each order to make sure it’s presented correctly, encouraging local families to stay and eat. Like the very beginnings of a galaxy, one can sense Crispy Chick’s gravity in creating a new kind of community hub.

The neighborhood still has a hard-knocks reputation, and some have approached Fekadu with the proposition to put Crispy Chick in a suburb or college town. “Sadly, not even one single person sees the vision that I see,” she exhales. “I want to be in communities where other big chain companies are afraid to go, where people normally have to walk or drive far away to get a better alternative.

And in being here, I want to influence minority kids, women … I want to show everyone that this really can be done.”

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

WE CAN NOW ADD GUALLY’S Bakery & Restaurant (6201 Denison Ave., 216-862-1441) to the growing selection of quick-serve Puerto Rican delis and bakeries in Cleveland’s Tremont, Clark Fulton and Stockyards neighborhoods.

Gually’s joins relative newcomers like Panaderia Las Villas & Deli (3216 West 41 St., 216-651-9610), Rincon Criollo Take 2 (7403 Denison Ave., 216-331-4525) and Caribe Bake Shop (2906 Fulton Rd., 216-281-8194), which relocated two years back into a new building on the same property.

Like the others, Gually’s Bakery offers walk-up counter service and a small dining room in which to sit and enjoy a combination of prepared foods, foods cooked to order, pastries and coffee. More than a dozen sandwiches, including hot-pressed Cubanos and tripletas, join hearty combination plates that include meat, rice and beans. Also on the menu are an assortment of stuffed mofongos and trifongos, a version that adds cassava and ripe plantain to the usual mash of green plantains.

Both sweet and savory pastries, such as flaky meat-filled empanadas, alcapurrias and rellenos, as well as authentic Puerto Rican cakes and breads, also are available.

Diners pay and wait until their name is called to retrieve their order from the counter.

Gually’s is open Monday through Saturday 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

A.J. Rocco’s to Close on Dec. 20 After a solid 18-year run, A.J. Rocco’s (816 Huron Rd. E., 216-8618358) will close its doors for good on Dec. 20. The Gateway District café/bar/ music venue opened in 2001, two days before 9-11.

Owner A. Brendan Walton says that the lease has expired and, after some consideration, he has decided to move on.

“It was a fun time,” he says. “A lot of good memories for sure.”

There’s one more big show on the calendar, he adds, when the Portersharks hit the stage on Friday, Dec. 13.

Walton’s coffee company, Cleveland Coffee, will live on. The small-batch beans are available throughout Northeast Ohio.

Mason’s Creamery’s Ramen Is Back for the Winter Fans of Mason’s Creamery’s soulsatisfying ramen will be happy to know that the ice cream shop has again transformed into a full-time ramen shop for the winter.

The transition will mean no ice cream, but ramen in a variety of styles, including a veg-friendly option.

Hours for the ramen season: Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 4 to 9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays from 4 until 10 p.m.

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner

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| ccl clevescene.com leve eveesscceene ev ne.ccom om | December Dece De Dece c em mbbeerr 4 - 10, 10, 0, 22019 019 01

G

iven that singersongwriter Brigitte Naggar, who records under the Common Holly moniker, was born in New York but grew up in Montreal, it makes sense that she initially gravitated toward Canadian artists.

“I listened to a fair amount of singersongwriter stuff,” she says via phone from her Montreal home. She performs with Bebe Machete and Kid Tigrrr at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday at the Beachland Tavern. “I was really into Metric and Emily Haines for most of my young teens, and I also got into Feist, who is a Canadian hero. I also like older ones like Neil Young and Joni Mitchell. I had some influence from my dad, who liked Dire Straits and J.J. Cale.

He also liked fun ’60s bands from France.

He’s from France and wanted to make sure that we got some of that in our system as well.”

Naggar received her first acoustic guitar at 16 when her dad surprised her with it.

“I started writing on that,” she says.

“I’m 27 now, so it’s been about 11 years.”

Initially, she published some songs on MySpace before settling upon the moniker Common Holly.

“That came from a series of brainstorms,” she says when asked about her band’s name. “I think it began at a party where people were going around in a circle and talking about what kind of imagery went well with the music.

We ended up on plants, and I did some research on plants. I liked the sound of Common Holly. It’s that Christmas plant you see around. I thought the imagery was cool. It’s pretty red berries enshrouded in these dark, sharp leaves. There’s a cool parallel there with the music and the aesthetics of the music.”

The first song she recalls writing, “New Bed,” wound up on Common Holly’s 2017 debut, Playing House.

“I don’t know if it’s [really the first song

I ever wrote], but that’s what I remember being my first song,” she says. “For the album version, we changed it up a fair amount in terms of how it’s performed, and that’s what justified re-recording it and using it on the album.”

The press release for Playing House describes it as a “look inward” to differentiate it from her new album, When I say to you Black Lightning, a “look outward” that offers “an exploration of the ways in which we all experience pain, fear and self-delusion, and how we can learn to confront those feelings with boldness.”

“Yes, that first record was a look inward, and the new record is meant to be the opposite,” she says. “In talking to people, it has become more clear to me that, making the second record, there was a new awareness that people might be listening to it and there might be an audience I might not have had the first time around. It was kind of blissful and unknowing with that first record. This time, I’m not famous or anything, but there’s more of an audience. Knowing you have an audience has changed the way I write. Maybe it’s not so interesting to write about yourself for other people.”

Naggar says she meant to record the entire album at her mother’s cabin, but things didn’t go as planned.

“We did two sets of a week and a half there,” she explains. “Myself and my producer Devin [Bate] drove all our gear up there and set up. Then, we weren’t done yet, so we had to piece it together from various places. We used a friend’s studio and Devin’s bedroom.”

The opening track, “Central Booking,” features whisper-thin vocals and an undulating guitar riff that makes it sound like a cross between Suzanne Vega and Cat Power.

“There were a few things that inspired it,” she says of the track. “It’s slang for jail. I came upon someone in the last few years who spent the night in jail, and they

were a person with various difficulties.

Their story inspired the music. You start somewhere and go wherever the song takes you, so it’s not biographical, but it definitely started there.”

The album’s final track, “Crazy Okay,” features a ukulele-like guitar riff and upper register vocals. “Don’t leave me, I’m crazy, okay,” Naggar pleads during the acoustic intro.

“It’s something that someone said to me once,” she says when asked about the tune’s inspiration. “I thought it was so devastatingly relatable and so much so that it was enough to base a song around.

It was meant as a joke, and it came out in about five minutes. I sent a demo to [producer] Devin [Bate] as a joke, and then I started performing it. It seemed like people related to it, so I thought it should be on the album. It’s my travel classical guitar. It sounds like a bass ukulele. It has nylon strings, so it sounds like a weird ukulele.”

Naggar says her live show rocks a little harder than her two albums.

“It’s a bit heavier,” she says. “It’s more of a rock formation. It’s alternative rock and takes some of the hardness and rawness from the album, and we haven’t incorporated any electronics yet, but my guitarist has a crazy number of pedals.”

She’s uncertain, however, if the live show will influence the next album.

“It’s kind of something I ask myself a lot,” she admits. “I wonder how close the live record and the album should be. I think part of the creative process is being able to embellish the album in the studio, and the live show is about being able to present the performance as the best way to perform it. The record is the best way to listen to it from home. Those are two different experiences. [The next record will probably be] more of the same but maybe have slightly more of the live energy.”

jniesel@clevescene.com | t@jniesel

Common Holly, Bebe Machete and Kid Tigrrr • 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 10 • Beachland Tavern, 15711 Waterloo Rd., 216-383-1124 • Tickets: $10 ADV, $12 DOS, beachlandballroom.com | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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MASONIC CLEVELAND: 3615 Euclid Ave, Cleveland OH 44115 HOUSE OF BLUES: 308 Euclid Ave, Cleveland OH 44114 masoniccleveland.com / houseofblues.com | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

MUSIC STILL ROCKING IN AMERICA Night Ranger’s Jack Blades talks about revisiting the band’s first two albums

By Matt Wardlaw Photo by Jay Gilbert

IN A SCENE THAT SEEMS LIKE it could’ve come out of a National Lampoon’s Vacation film, singerbassist Jack Blades and the members of Night Ranger were out on tour in 1980 in a vehicle that sounds an awful lot like Clark Griswold’s Family Truckster station wagon.

“The station wagon had the phony wood all the way around it with the trim on it and stuff. I think I got it from my parents,” he says in a phone interview. Night Ranger performs at 8 p.m. on Saturday at MGM Northfield Park – Center Stage. “My parents were like, ‘Yeah, we have an extra car; you can have it because you’re so frickin’ broke.’”

The tour Blades references took place two years before the band would release its debut album, Dawn Patrol.

Sammy Hagar had thrown them a major bone, inviting the group to come on tour with him. It was a big break, and even now Blades says that Hagar “has so much to do with the success and formation of this band.”

“Sam put us on a tour — he did a tour called Taking It to the People.

We didn’t even have a record deal. We had nothing, but he put us on this run of 10 shows,” Blades recalls. “And then, Bill Graham took a liking to us, because he saw us on those shows.

He started putting us on these shows opening up for Rick Springfield and Loverboy at a big festival in Sacramento and then he put us opening up for Judas Priest before we even had a record out. I think that’s where we truly found our footing was when we started playing these shows in front of pretty big crowds.”

Night Ranger had already spent a year building a buzz in the Bay Area, playing shows as Stereo. Blades remembers at least three songs that eventually wound up on Dawn Patrol coming from those early club days.

Guitarist Gary Pihl, who went on to perform with Boston, was playing guitar for Hagar at the time and offered to let the band use his house to record some demos.

“He threw us the keys to his house and said, ‘Just don’t burn the place down. Record what you want to record at my studio,’ and we’re like, ‘Yeah, we can dig this.’ So we all kind of lived up there and hung

out there. Actually, ‘Sister Christian’ was on one of the original demos,” he says. “It was a real fun time. It was a time of forming who we were, what we were doing and how we were doing it. I think that whole unity of living together in a band house, while we were cutting the demos, really reinforced the camaraderie that we had since the beginning. Believe me, [guitarist] Brad [Gillis] and [drummer] Kelly [Keagy] and I have carried that through to this very day in 2019.”

Blades, Keagy and Gillis are spending some time looking back at the early days and some of the most successful times with their current Dawn of Madness tour, which finds the band tearing through the whole of 1982’s Dawn Patrol and its 1983 counterpart, Midnight Madness.

“Don’t Tell Me You Love Me,” the lead track on Dawn Patrol, brought the band its first Top 40 hit. Midnight Madness carried the group into the Top 20 with two more gigantic hits, “When You Close Your Eyes” and the epic power ballad “Sister Christian.” Although it technically wasn’t a huge success at the time, in terms of chart position, “(You Can Still) Rock in America,” also from Midnight Madness, would quickly find a permanent home in Night Ranger’s concert set list.

Even in 2019, as the conversation continues about whether or not “rock is dead,” Blades points to “(You Can Still) Rock in America” and notes that it was a topic that went as far back as the early ’80s when they were again on the road with Sammy Hagar, now touring for his Three Lock Box album.

“Everybody was saying rock was dead. You know, the Cars, Blondie, Haircut 100, Flock of Seagulls, all of these bands were really coming on strong, and all of the magazines were trumpeting, ‘Rock is dead; it’s now new wave’ and all of this kind of stuff,” Blades remembers. “But we were playing with Sam, and the places were like five-, six-, seven-, eight-thousand people, packed out, rocking and rolling, everybody rocking, Sammy kicking ass, Night Ranger kicking ass. I mean, I’m thinking to myself, ‘I don’t know about this, they’re saying rock is dead, but man, you can still rock in America.’ And I thought, ‘Well, shit, man, that’s a great title for a song!’”

It’s a tale Blades has often recounted when remembering the origins of the song, but another equally familiar piece of Night Ranger history is the story of why “Sister Christian,” which had come to life during the group’s early demo sessions, didn’t make it to record until Midnight Madness. One theory is

that album producer Pat Glasser had urged the band to hold it back from Dawn Patrol and save it for the next record.

“You know, Brad [Gillis] always likes to tell the story that we kept ‘Sister Christian’ in our back pocket because we knew that it would be a big hit,” Blades says. “But for me, my recollection is that we just didn’t put it on the first record.”

Whatever the circumstances were, “Sister Christian” came in handy.

The group was in Seattle with Hagar, as Blades recalls, and things were going really well. “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me” had started to get major airplay, both on the radio and on MTV. Night Ranger had sold over a million albums. Checking in with their record company, Boardwalk Records, for an update from the road, they got a notice that the number was disconnected.

“We sent somebody down there and [there was] yellow tape across the door. Shit! We’re like, ‘What?

The record company doesn’t exist!’

Wait a minute; we’ve sold one million records, where’s our money?’”

Management stepped in and urged the group to make the best of the situation and just go back into the studio and work on its next album.

“It’s like, ‘Okay, start recording now. Come off the road, immediately | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

31

KentStage =HGÍM FBLL MA>L> @K>:M LAHPL MB<D>ML HG L:E> GHP

The Woodchopper’s Ball

Hot Tuna

(Featuring Muriel Anderson, Michael Kelsey, Brian Henke, Mark Sganga, Jesse Smith, Helen Avakian, and more)

50th Anniversary

Sat December 7

Tuck & Patti Sat December 14

Larry Cambell & Teresa Williams

Zach Deputy - Red Moon Tour

Wed December 11

Fri December 13

The Fixx

First Snow

Thu December 19

Sat December 21

MUSIC start recording now.’ We’re like, ‘Yeah, it would be nice to have some songs,’” he recalls with a big laugh. “Okay, what about that ‘Sister Christian?’”

They had “Sister Christian,” and in short order, “(You Can Still) Rock in America.” Blades, Keagy and guitarist Jeff Watson wrote the acoustic “Let Him Run,” which would end up closing the album.

“We just had to flesh it out with some other stuff,” Blades says. “I had written ‘Touch of Madness.’ I came off the road and wrote ‘Rumours in the Air’ and suddenly, the album just happened. Suddenly, we had enough songs, and we got right in there and started recording.”

Looking back at Dawn Patrol and Midnight Madness now, the two albums tell the typical tale of a group that was young and hungry and writing some of their very best material, something which is evident

Keyboardist Eric Levy and guitarist Keri Kelli have been especially enthused about tackling the Dawn Patrol and Midnight Madness material, digging deep into what was originally put down on album by Alan “Fitz” Fitzgerald and Jeff Watson.

“They’ve embraced the songs off the first two albums in such a way that has just made us feel so great,” he says. “They play them like they’re brand new songs and we’re going to tear ’em up. That’s the way they play ’em.”

In fact, it’s Kelli who is responsible for a major nugget that popped up in the encore for the group’s Japanese dates. After playing through the two albums, the band returned to play some additional tracks, including the title track from 1987’s Big Life, making its first recorded set list appearance since the tour for that album. “[Kelli] was in his gym, and he’s working out and he had his Night Ranger stuff on random and all of the sudden, [imitates riff], he went, ‘Holy fuck, what is this?’ He came

NIGHT RANGER Ekoostik Hookah

Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn

The High Kings

Tue December 31

Mon February 3

Mon February 24

We Banjo 3

Dave Mason

Carbon Leaf

Wed March 4

Sat March 7

Sun March 8

JUST ANNOUNCED!

Howard Jones Acoustic Trio

Robert Cray

Bob Mould

Wed, March 10

Sat, March 14

Wed, March 25

ALL SHOWS AT THE KENT STAGE UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED Tickets available at thekentstage.com or 877-987-6487 GMK [w cw i {{ © a{ B e~ JJHJF

32

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

8 P.M., SATURDAY, DEC. 7 MGM NORTHFIELD PARK–CENTER STAGE, 10777 NORTHFIELD RD., NORTHFIELD, 330-908-7625 TICKETS: $35-$115, MGMNORTHFIELDPARK.MGMRESORTS.COM

looking at the album tracks that surround the better known songs that became hits and fan favorites.

There are songs like “Sing Me Away” and “Eddie’s Comin’ Out Tonight” from Dawn Patrol that would become a familiar presence in the set list, but also deeper cuts like “Play Rough,” a gritty, driving rocker from Blades, and the equally intense “Penny,” sung by Keagy, that faded into the background as the band continued release more albums and score additional hits.

A feeling of urgency fills “Passion Play,” from Midnight Madness, while “Why Does Love Have To Change” is another muscular barn burner from Keagy.

“Some of these songs, I’m telling you, man, we hadn’t played in 30 years,” Blades says of the current tour. “Other ones, we hadn’t ever played live and we’re like, okay, let’s give it a shot. But it was like reacquainting yourself with an old friend that you knew intimately.

It was just like embracing and wrapping your arms around these old friends and then sort of quantifying them in 2019 when they were originally done in 1982 and 1983.”

back in and he’s like, ‘We’ve got to do this song’ and we’re like, ‘What are you talking about?’ He’s like, ‘“Big Life!”’ and we’re like, ‘What?’

He’s like, ‘“Big Life,”’ dude! Listen!’

We went, ‘Oh!’ and all of the sudden, we just started singing and playing it and we all just went crazy for it.

So we played it in Japan, and the Japanese fans went crazy for it. I think we’ll be hitting it too with you guys [ in Cleveland].”

As Night Ranger finishes out 2019 with these Dawn of Madness shows, Blades says that they’ve got major plans for the new year that will be revealed in early January.

“We’re going to make a big announcement. There’s a very big tour going out, and Night Ranger is involved with it and we’re very excited about it,” he says. “I think a lot of fans are going to be really excited and really happy. It’s going to be a busy, busy year next year. That’s all I have to say. We’re going to be with a lot of people, some bands that people are going to be very happy about.”

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

| clevescene.com m | December 4 - 10, 2019

33

27 YEARS! G IN T A R B E CEL

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OM WOVENHAND

THE BEAT DOWN (9pm) 8 Producers, 8 Emcees, 1 Battle!

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| cleve clevescene.com escene.com es m | December 4 - 10, 20199

TUESDAY 12.10 LYRICAL RHYTHMS (9pm) Live Band Open Mic Poetry Hip-Hop Soul Experience

SAT 3/28

SAT 12/21 RUDE STAFF CHECKERS YOUTH PALLET

THE HOOK UP (10pm) Top 40 Club Night w/DJ MIKE FILLY FRIDAY 12.6 SAN WAV & FRIENDS (10PM) All genres of Music.

A vibe to experience.

ANTI-FLAG GRADE 2

YACHT

PERSONSPLACESTHINGS SMITH TAYLOR

THURSDAY 12.5 KENT STATE 8 (6pm) OPEN STYLES DANCE BATTLE

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34

TUE 12/31

THE GROG SHOP PRESENTS AT

BEACHLAND

SUN 1/26

$!-)%. *52!$/ NICK THUNE

SAD MUSIC, SAD COMEDY

LIVEWIRE

all the live music you should see this week Photo by Kosoma Jensen

WED

Sganga, Jesse Smith, Helen Avakian, Dave Irwin, Matt Thomas, Andy Poxon: 7 p.m., $30-$40. The Kent Stage.

12/04

Blood & Stomach Pills/Obnox: 9 p.m., $5. Now That’s Class.

De’Sean Jones and Knomadik: 7 p.m., $15. Bop Stop.

Rockapella Holiday Show: 7:30 p.m., $35 ADV, $45 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

Thomas and the Work-Men/ Melladramatics/Westown Bend: 7:30 p.m., $6. Grog Shop.

Waterparks/De’Wayne/Kitten: 7 p.m., $27 ADV, $30 DOS. House of Blues.

THU

12/05

Art Alexakis of Everclear/Jason Kaminski: 8:30 p.m., $20 ADV, $25 DOS. Grog Shop.

Carlos Jones, Jen Maurer, Michael Rotman: 8 p.m., $15. Nighttown.

Front Steps Presents: Blues Chronicles: 7 p.m., $25. Bop Stop.

Irish Reels & Christmas Carols with Quinn & Custy (in the Supper Club): 7 p.m., free. Music Box Supper Club.

On the Sun/Funk Worthy: 8 p.m., $8. CODA. Paris_monster/Kitschy: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $15 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

Pink Talking Fish: 8 p.m., $25.

Beachland Ballroom.

The Spill Canvas/The Juliana Theory/Cory Wells: 7 p.m., $18 ADV, $20 DOS. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

FRI

SUN

12/06

DJ LDC’s Soul Music & Other Music for the Soul: 6 p.m., free.

Happy Dog. Horns & Things: 8:30 p.m., $20.

Nighttown.

Jazz Jam Session: 11 p.m., free. Bop Stop.

Carlos Jones and The P.L.U.S. Band/The Robin Blake Sound Experiment: 9 p.m. Grog Shop.

Sullivan King/Eliminate/Grabbitz/ DJ Wolftown/ALT + F8: 9 p.m., $25 ADV, $30 DOS. Beachland Ballroom.

No Limit Reunion Tour With Master P/Silkk the Shocker/ Mystikal/Mia X/Fiend: 7 p.m.

Agora Theatre.

Rumbling Spires/Fits of Hail/Slug Fest: 8:30 p.m., $6. Happy Dog. Smiley Baldazar: 9 p.m., $10.

Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Local punk rockers the Sidekicks come to the Grog Shop. See: Saturday.

Jackie Warren: 10:30 p.m., free.

Nighttown.

Helen Welch: “Got My Love To Keep Me Warm”: 8 p.m., $20. Bop Stop.

Whirlybirds (in the Supper Club): 8 p.m., $12 ADV, $15 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

SAT

12/07

Grumpy Plum/Honey Pocket/Vinyl Wings: 9 p.m., $6. Happy Dog. Javon Jackson Quartet: 7 p.m., $20-$25. Bop Stop.

Tim Lekan Quintet: 8:30 p.m., $10. Nighttown.

Night Ranger: 8 p.m. MGM Northfield Park.

The Ohio City Singers: Last year, Ohio City Singers, a locally based ensemble featuring some of Cleveland’s best musicians, released two new tunes and added to its already impressive catalog of original Christmas music. The zydeco-tinged “What’s the Name of Santa’s Sleigh?” and the rowdy guitarand accordion-driven “Hey! Hey! Hey! (It’s a Holiday)” are two more fantastic tracks that capture holiday magic in a bottle. In addition to leader Chris Allen, the all-star band features Doug McKean (the Boys From the County Hell), Brent Kirby (the Jack Fords, the New Soft Shoe), Austin “Walkin’ Cane” Charanghat, Don Dixon, Kelly Wright (the Anne E. DeChant Band), Matt Sobol (the Waynes), Nick Stipanovich (the Boys From the County Hell) and Dave

Padrutt (Falling Stars). Today’s matinee show at the Music Box regularly draws fans of all ages and is always festive. (Jeff Niesel) 1 p.m. Music Box Supper Club.

Public Squares/Actual Form/ Mild Animals: 9 p.m., $7.

Beachland Tavern.

The Sidekicks/Saintseneca/ Natural Sway: Sidekicks singer-guitarist Steve Ciolek and drummer Matt Climer met at Paudua High School in the early 2000s. Both freshmen, they shared a history class and randomly discovered that they liked the same type of music, namely pop-punk. The band made its debut in 2007 with So Long, Soggy Dog, and the group has been going strong ever since. Produced, engineered and mixed by John Agnello (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., Kurt Vile), the band’s latest album, Happiness Hours, emphasizes the band’s melodic side. “Twin’s Twist,” for example, features harmony vocals and shimmering guitars as Ciolek sings about adopting a “high school state of mind.” Good stuff. (Niesel) 8 p.m., $12 ADV, $15 DOS. Grog Shop.

Spirit of the Bear/Suitcase Runaway/Worry Stone: 8 p.m., $10. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Street Gurgler Record Release/ Throne of Iron/Zip-Zapp: 9 p.m., $5. Now That’s Class.

Jackie Warren: 10:30 p.m., free.

Nighttown.

The Woodchopper’s Ball with Muriel Anderson, Michael Kelsey, Brian Henke, Mark

12/08

Dominick Farinacci: 7 p.m., $20.

Nighttown.

Ben Miller Band: 7 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

Ellis Paul (in the Supper Club): 7:30 p.m., $18 ADV, $22 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

Pine/Amnita/I Hate It Too/Pollen Eyes (in the Locker Room): 8 p.m., $10. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Taste My Movement: Christmas Ale Featuring R The Czar: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Grog Shop.

Kate Voegele & Tyler Hilton: You probably remember Tyler Hilton from his time on CW’s soapy One Tree Hill and also when he played Elvis in Walk the Line.

These days, Hilton continues to dabble in acting, but he’s still an introspective singer-songwriter at heart. He comes through Cleveland tonight with fellow musician and OTH co-star Kate Voegele, a hometown native who now lives in California. With her latest single, “Shoot This Arrow,” Voegele’s released a tune that speaks out against sexual harassment. She has said the song is “for everyone who needs the courage and strength to speak up about what they’ve been through and for anyone who has ever felt taken advantage of, abused, or manipulated.”

Expect to hear the techno-based ballad at tonight’s show. (Laura Morrison) 7:30 p.m., $20 ADV, $25 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

TUE

12/10

Common Holly/Bebe Machete/Kid Tigrrr: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

Forest City Ltd. Presents: The Plug: 9 p.m., free. CODA. Roy King Trio/Joe Hunter/Marty Block: 7 p.m., $10. Nighttown.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene | clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

35

BAND OF THE WEEK PUBLIC SQUARES 532 W. MARKET ST. AKRON, OH 330-376-7171

By Jeff Niesel

Photo courtesy of Public Squares

THIS FRI. DEC. 6

THIS SAT. DEC. 7

1964 BEATLES TRIBUTE

FRI. DEC. 13 & SAT. DEC. 14

FRANKIE SCINTA HOLIDAY SHOW

NEW YEAR’S EVE!

DISCO INFERNO FRI. JAN. 10

NAJEE SAT. JAN. 18

LAKESIDE

SHOW TICKETS AVAILABLE ONLINE! www.thetangier.com BANQUET FACILITIES AVAILABLE FOR EVENTS

36

MEET THE BAND: Thuck Apton (via

AN ARRAY OF INFLUENCES: “We began

WHERE YOU CAN HEAR THEM:

human vessel Brandon M. Abate, drums, vocals), Regulus Nine (via human vessel Steven Manko, bass), Dr. Rex Reezin (via human vessel Bill Kowalcic, guitar, additional vocals)

recording the songs without a grand plan in mind,” says Abate.

“Somewhere in the process, I started receiving ideas that involved something bigger than just a collection of songs. Influential records were Queen’s Flash Gordon soundtrack, Alice Cooper’s Welcome to My Nightmare, Ice Cube’s AmeriKKKas Most Wanted and the Who’s Quadrophenia — all records that have captivating elements between the songs that tend to be just as memorable as the songs themselves. The voice in my head told me, ‘Take this to a level far beyond these influences.’”

publicsquaresband.com.

NO REAL PLAN IN MIND: From Up There, the latest album from this local act, serves as the soundtrack to a movie that “exists outside of this dimension.” Songs are “intertwined” with clips from the movie, showcasing the cast, which includes the likes of professional voice actor Ralph Gunderman, punk rocker Bill Stevenson (Descendents, ALL, Black Flag), Annie Hardy (Giant Drag) and Tony Erba (Face Value, 9 Shocks Terror, H100’s). A limited run of trading cards, one for each character, drawn by local artist Jake Kelly, accompanies the album’s release. Available on 12inch vinyl, the disc was pressed at Gotta Groove. The locally based Wax Mage will release 25 handpoured Wax Mage vinyl copies with “star dust” embedded in the vinyl.

The album will also be available on CD and on all streaming and download sources.

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

A CINEMATIC EXPERIENCE: For the

release show, the band will perform the record in its entirety. “We plan to transform the Beachland Tavern into a space that will feel like a scene from a rock and roll sci-fi movie, which isn’t far from what it will actually be,” says Abate. “ We’re insanely excited about the other bands on the show, Mild Animals and Actual Form — both bands that we are all very fond of and will make for a great flow of music throughout the night. We highly advise being there for all the bands.”

WHY YOU SHOULD HEAR THEM: Abate started wishing there was a movie and gave guest vocalists a rough idea of what to say. Abate says the vinyl format fit the concept perfectly. “Program Alpha,” the album’s lengthy opening track vacillates between spoken word interludes and riveting punk/hard rock segments that recall everyone from Dead Kennedys to Bauhaus.

“In digital formats, Track 1 is the entire first side, and Track 2 is the entire second side,” says Abate.

“The cast members we reached out to were eager to be involved, even though in most cases I’m not sure they fully understood what they were contributing to.”

WHERE YOU CAN SEE THEM: Public

Squares perform with Mild Animals and Actual Form at 9 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7, at the Beachland Tavern.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

SAVAGE LOVE QUICKIES

by Dan Savage My ex-girlfriend, who I dated for nine months, called me two months after we broke up and accused me of giving her HPV. She was going on, telling me how I needed to tell any future person I had sex with that I have HPV. I’m a 38-year-old man, and I’ve never had any signs or symptoms of any sexually transmitted infections.

I know HPV is very common, often clears up on its own, and cannot be tested for in men. What are your thoughts? Do I need to tell sexual partners that I have HPV? — Help Person Vacillating Most people are infected with HPV — the human papillomavirus — at some point in their lifetime, most never develop symptoms, and in most cases the infection goes away on its own. There’s an effective and safe vaccine that protects people from HPV strains that can cause cervical, anal, dick, or throat cancer — and everyone, regardless of age, should get vaccinated. And since people can develop symptoms years after their initial exposure, there’s no way for your ex-girlfriend to know that you infected her. Or that she didn’t infect you. Every sexually active adult should assume they’ve been exposed to HPV, that they have it or have had it, and conduct themselves accordingly.

*** I’m a gay man, and there’s a guy I see on the bus who I find attractive in the extreme. I can’t keep myself from looking at him. Now here comes the but: He smokes. I’ve been toying with an idea to convince him to quit. I want to slip a note into his pocket or backpack with the following proposal: “Let’s make a deal. You give up cigarettes, and in return I’ll give you a blowjob once a week for a year. I’m concerned about your health. Please consider.” Other people who ride the bus also smoke, but I’m not inclined to make them the same offer. But it makes me sad knowing this guy smokes, and I want to get him to stop. If this idea is crazy, please say so — it will help me move on.

— Before Undertaking Sincere Tobacco Eradication Deal

While your motives are no doubt pure — there’s nothing in this plan for you, BUSTED, just the quiet satisfaction of putting a beautiful stranger on the path to better health — you don’t know if this guy is attracted to you. But he’s likely to react badly to your proposal even if he is. Because while you and I both know you’re being entirely selfless — you’re the Florence Nightingale of anonymous/no-recip blowjobs — this extremely attractive stranger is going to assume you’re a delusional creep with boundary issues, because slipping a note like that into someone’s backpack or pocket (which would require you to technically and legally assault him) is precisely the kind of thing delusional creeps with boundary issues do. And because delusional creeps with boundary issues do this sort of thing, BUSTED,

One of the top reasons people choose safe words, SPANK, is so that they can scream, “Oh, God! Stop, please! I beg you! It’s too much!” and the person who’s spanking or pegging them knows that since they didn’t hear “collusion” or “giuliani” or “zelensky,” the spanking or pegging can continue. Not using the safe word is how a sub signals their approval throughout the spanking/ pegging/whatevering process — or, at the very least, how a sub signals their willingness to endure the spanking/pegging/whatevering to please the top.

PANIC. If you’re already seeing someone about your depression and anxiety, please bring these attacks up with your provider. If you aren’t seeing someone, please start seeing someone. As for your partner’s hesitation to have intercourse, well, that’s understandable. But there’s an easy enough work-around: If an intense orgasm followed by go-totown-style penetration triggers your panic attacks, then either don’t do penetrative sex after you’ve had an intense orgasm or wait until after your partner goes to town to have your orgasm.

***

***

My long-term partner and I are in a soft Dom/sub relationship. Neither of us has been sexually or physically abused.

I’ve been in situations where I’m with my better half, rocking her world, giving her an orgasm, coming inside her, and she loves it. The next week, same scenario, she’s moaning and groaning, I explode, and she says to me, “Did you come?” And I’m there thinking, “I thought I was pleasuring her like last time, and she suddenly can’t tell when I exploded inside her?!”

— What The Actual Fuck

every sexually active adult should assume they’ve been exposed to hPv and conduct themselves accordingly. good and decent guys like you can’t do it without being misunderstood.

So absent some sign of interest from this attractive stranger — like him staring back at you — you’re going to do what any normal, nondelusional, non-creepy gay guy would do after seeing an attractive stranger on the bus: Leave him alone while surreptitiously checking to see if he’s on any of the gay hookup apps.

*** My wife is über-vanilla. She is willing to spank me and peg me, but she won’t “take charge” of the situation.

She’s doing it to please me and expects me to signal approval throughout the process. As soon as a spanking gets to the point that I’m flinching and wanting it to stop, she stops. We’ve never gotten more than a few strokes into the pegging for the same reason.

I don’t really crave pain per se, but I want and need her to be in charge.

— Seeking Pointers About Needed Kinks

I suffer mainly from depression and a little anxiety. Lately when the sex is great, I end up having a panic attack.

If I have an intense orgasm and then he goes to town with penetration, there will be a point where I physically shove him off and then my body shakes and my breathing starts getting really fast and I start crying, and basically I’m having a panic attack. I feel terrible for my partner, because it’s not really his fault. But somehow the physical overstimulation gives my body the “okay” to have a panic attack. It’s happened a few times, and my partner is now hesitant to have sex. I want to be able to stop these panic attacks mainly for him. However, when I do have the panic attacks, I want to just cry and let everything out. But of course my amazing partner just wants to comfort me and get it to stop. Please help.

— Problems Around Nookie-Induced Crisis Panic attacks during sex are something you might want to explore with a therapist or counselor,

Sometimes the person getting fucked (PGF) is paying close attention to the person doing the fucking (PDTF). The PGF is really taking the PDTF in, the PGF can see how close the PDTF is getting, the PGF knows just when the PDTF has arrived. But sometimes the PGF’s eyes roll back in their head and they float the fuck away, WTAF, because the fucking feels that damn good.

The PGF moans, the PGF groans, but the PGF is so lost in the physical and emotional sensations — they’re getting so deeply into the dicking — that it’s not until after the PDTF stops fucking them that the PGF even realizes the PDTF is done fucking them. So it’s not a bad sign that your better half sometimes has to ask if you came, WTAF, it’s a good sign.

On the Lovecast, meet the woman who’s read ALL of Dan’s columns since 1991: savagelovecast.com.

mail@savagelove.net t@fakedansavage

| clevescene.com | December 4 - 10, 2019

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