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APRIL 3-10, 2019 VOLUME 28 + ISSUE 14
FIRSTSHOT BY JARED MURPHY
Editor-In-Chief LISA CUNNINGHAM Associate Publisher JUSTIN MATASE Director of Operations KEVIN SHEPHERD Managing Editor ALEX GORDON Senior Writers RYAN DETO, AMANDA WALTZ Staff Writers HANNAH LYNN, JORDAN SNOWDEN Photographer/Videographer JARED WICKERHAM Digital Media Manager JOSH OSWALD Editorial Designer ABBIE ADAMS Graphic Designers JOSIE NORTON, JEFF SCHRECKENGOST Marketing and Promotions Coordinator CONNOR MARSHMAN Events and Sponsorship Manager BLAKE LEWIS Sales Representatives KAITLIN OLIVER, NICK PAGANO Office Coordinator MAGGIE WEAVER Advertising Sales Assistant TAYLOR PASQUARELLI Circulation Manager JEFF ENGBARTH Featured Contributors REGE BEHE, GAB BONESSO, LISSA BRENNAN, LYNN CULLEN, TERENEH IDIA, CHARLES ROSENBLUM, JESSIE SAGE, STEVE SUCATO Interns JANINE FAUST, XIOLA JENSEN, JARED MURPHY Office Administrator RODNEY REGAN National Advertising Representative VMG ADVERTISING 1.888.278.9866 OR 1.212.475.2529 Publisher EAGLE MEDIA CORP.
GENERAL POLICIES: Contents copyrighted 2019 by Eagle Media Corp. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in Pittsburgh City Paper are those of the author and not necessarily of Eagle Media Corp. LETTER POLICY: Letters, faxes or e-mails must be signed and include town and daytime phone number for confirmation. We may edit for length and clarity. DISTRIBUTION: Pittsburgh City Paper is published weekly by Eagle Media Corp. and is available free of charge at select distribution locations. One copy per reader; copies of past issues may be purchased for $3.00 each, payable in advance to Pittsburgh City Paper. FIRST CLASS MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS: Available for $175 per year, $95 per half year. No refunds.
COVER PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM READ THE STORY ON PAGE 6
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Braddock mayor Chardae Jones
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CP PHOTOS: JARED WICKERHAM
Ashley Priore inside the University of Pittsburgh library
THE BIG STORY
YOUNG BLOOD
Young candidates in Pittsburgh are sick of “waiting their turn” BY JANINE FAUST // INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
T
HERE IS A COMMON CRITICISM of young politicians like U.S. Reps.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or Ilhan Omar: “wait your turn.” It implies candidates must gather a certain level of experience and the go-ahead from older authority figures before seeking office. More and more, that sentiment is being rejected across the county, and in Pittsburgh. Ashley Priore is part of a new wave of young candidates who ignore that conventional wisdom. In fact, she’s wanted to get into politics since she was a young child and says she’s waited long enough. Priore is 19 years old and running for a seat on the Pittsburgh Public School Board (PPS). And she is not alone. Priore is joining hundreds of other young people across the country vying for elected positions on the local, state, and national levels. The 2018 midterm season saw an enormous spike in millennials (ages 23-39) running for, and eventually elected to, political office. Nearly 700 millennials ran as Democrats for about 6,000 state legislature positions across the country during the 2018 midterms, according to the Democratic
Legislative Campaign Committee. Several young mayors won local offices in the last few years; most recently Chardae Jones, 29, was appointed interim mayor of Braddock. Sara Innamorato, 33, and Summer Lee, 31, both beat longtime incumbents for seats in the Pennsylvania state House. And U.S. Reps. Conor Lamb, 34, and Guy Reschenthaler, 35, recently won elections in the Pittsburgh area. Jones says a challenge to being a young candidate is avoiding ruts where people are dismissive and want things to just stay the same. “Just because things have always been done a certain way doesn’t mean it’s the right way or most effective” she says. That trend has continued this year, with several young people in the area running for seats historically held by older politicians. Their challenges include convincing voters they are just as qualified as anyone, amplifying their policy proposals, and completing the proper paperwork. They have the energy and some backing of younger voters, and obstacles lie ahead. But all of them are in agreement: They’re not waiting their turn. Priore, a first-year student at the University of Pittsburgh and professional CONTINUES ON PG. 8
PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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YOUNG BLOOD, CONTINUED FROM PG. 7
Chris Kumanchik and Bethany Hallam
chess player, says she was inspired to run for PPS board because the students she tutors in chess told her they want someone closer to their age representing them. She also didn’t like that older adults were surprised to find out she understands the school board’s structure and issues. “Instead of telling people they’re too young to run, they should be encouraging it … We’re the next generation of people who are going to make up the majority of leaders,” she says. Priore says her young age would allow her to approach old problems with new ideas and she could find it easier to connect with students, many who already support her campaign. “Some people are really excited, others can’t get over how young I am,” she says. Meanwhile, Chris Kumanchik, 25, is currently challenging incumbent Bruce
Kraus for the District 3 seat of Pittsburgh City Council. He views his young age as a “double-edged sword.” His goals, if elected, include rolling back parking restrictions on the South Side and stopping Kraus’ proposed gun ban.
views do not necessarily align, and take problems with small disagreements,” Kumanchik says. But getting voters to see them as legitimate isn’t young candidates’ only hardship. Sometimes their naivety in
“INSTEAD OF TELLING PEOPLE THEY’RE TOO YOUNG TO RUN, THEY SHOULD BE ENCOURAGING IT.” The self-described moderate finds it tough to gain the trust of certain voters, no matter their age. “It can sometimes be a hard time with older voters because they may be quick to assume I’m lacking experience or have radical views, while younger voters see their views and my
political workings can cause them setbacks. Priore was recently removed from the Democratic ballot because the school board said it didn’t receive a required financial interest form. Priore says she mailed in a financial interest form and believes the file was misplaced. She plans
to run as an independent in the general election instead. Kumanchik faced the possibility of being kicked off the primary ballot after he missed a March 28 hearing that challenged his petition signatures. He says he wasn’t properly notified of the meeting, and the challenge was overturned at an April 2 hearing. He remains on the ballot. John Celock, author of The Next Generation: Young Elected Officials and Their Impact on American Politics says it can sometimes be tough for younger candidates to get on their feet, with people questioning if they’re truly able to navigate the political arena. Celock cites four reasons why young people run for office in America: they’re related to a politician, they always wanted to do it, they were once a political CONTINUES ON PG. 10
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staffer, or they’re an idealist. Currently, he says the number of “idealist” young candidates is on the rise. He names both Priore and Kumanchik as fitting this description. “I use it [as a] very broad term, mainly to talk about people very passionate about issues, and see elected office as a way to achieve their goals,” says Celock. Ross Rocketto is co-founder of Run for Something, an organization that recruits and supports young progressive candidates. He says a “pretty solid number” of young candidates, as well as plenty of non-white, women, immigrant, and LGBTQ candidates, often encounter pushback despite their enthusiasm and are told to “wait their turn.” “It tends to be folks attached to maintaining the status quo, the sort more likely to support the more established person,” Rocketto says. Young candidates can defeat this skepticism after proving they’re capable and want to pursue creative solutions, according to Rocketto. “Voters are tired of hearing the same things over and over again. They want to hear a new, positive vision of their community,” he says.
Bethany Hallam, 29, is running for Allegheny County Council and was inspired to join a growing chorus of regional politicians who are not older, white men. She plans to focus on issues such as environmental and criminal-justice reform. Though she’s long been active in local politics, Hallam also has found it harder to convince voters she knows what she’s doing, and has encountered her fair share of people telling her to “wait her turn.” “It’s not about your turn, it’s when you feel you can represent the voters better than anyone else can,” she says. “It doesn’t matter if you’ve been in politics for 40 years or if you haven’t even been alive that long. It’s about life experience playing into a narrative of a future of change.” Hallam says her youth is a plus because she’s willing to educate herself about different political structures and policies to make up for less experience. She says she wouldn’t be “complacent” if elected to office. “You really lose touch with people if you’re in the office all the time,” she says. “This isn’t old school politics anymore, doing it for social notoriety. The younger crowd [is] more than anyone else in it for the people, to effect change.”
JENSORENSEN
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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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.GABBY NORMAL.
THE CRUELEST MONTH BY GAB BONESSO CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
I
THINK MY FAVORITE poem of all
time is T. S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land.” It’s the only poem that ever grabbed me within its first five words: “April is the cruelest month.” DAMN RIGHT, it is! The first time I heard that poem, Katharine Hepburn was reciting it in the film Without Love. I was about 9 or 10 years old and when I heard that first line and it just clicked with me. That particular April, I had my first experience with allergies, which turned into a sinus infection. My sickness arrived just as the April spring weather did. I remember hearing my friends playing outside as jealousy soared through my sick, little body. My mother reminded me that with spring
weather comes spring allergies and I pouted, “April is the cruelest month!” Statements like this were used as evidence by my mother to prove that I was a child “genius.” Granted, had I learned the poem from actually reading Eliot’s “The Waste Land,” then she might have been correct. Sadly, I was
an old-movie obsessed couch-potato who learned poetry from television. In conclusion, I was not a child genius, rather a child recluse. As I grew older, I attended Duquesne University where I was exposed to the actual text. It was then the concept of the opening line and the entirety of the
whole poem fell into place. I have this tendency to personalize art to find a connection with the artist and their work. At that particular time in my life, I was just beginning adulthood. My father had just died that winter and my entire world was changing in front of my eyes. I recall that April being extra cruel. My father’s birthday was April 9 and his favorite holiday was Easter, which fell in April that year. The grief had a cold emptiness that was not being soothed by sunshine and warm weather. It was the sun beaming on my sad face when I realized that April is a month full of dichotomies, like Eliot describes in the poem. It’s a month that’s in complete transition, finding its way out of the dead of winter to start anew. I now look at April like the puberty of months. Abrupt weather changes (mood swings), squealing wind (voice changes), and constant April rain (middle school tears). I think the best way to muddle through this cruel month is to remember the words of another wise poet, Justin Timberlake. Use it as your mantra this month and repeat it as needed. “It’s gonna be May.”
•
Follow featured contributor Gab Bonesso on Twitter @gabbonesso
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Student-led protest in Downtown Pittsburgh on Mon., March 25
BY TERENEH IDIA // CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
I
N MARCH OF 1955, Claudette Colvin was sitting with three friends on a bus in Montgomery, Ala. As the bus drove closer into town and more white passengers boarded the bus, the bus driver asked — no — he told her and her friends to move. Her friends did; Colvin did not. She is quoted as saying: “History glued me to the seat.” She was fifteen years old then. She is now 79. Then it’s 1963: The Birmingham Movement in Alabama. Students were being sprayed with high-pressure fire hoses, attacked by police dogs, rounded up, arrested, put into paddy wagons and sent in jail en masse. Stirring blackand-white images were broadcast and published all over the world, dispelling the fairy tale that the United States is the “land of the free ...” They influenced, or shamed, the United States government into passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 1964, Bob Moses led what was later called “Freedom Summer.” This was a project to get college students to help register African-American Mississippians to vote. Though they could legally vote, intimidation and other voter suppression efforts kept many from registering. People could lose their jobs, homes, and/ or lives. In fact, some of the student volunteers were beaten or lost their lives just registering Black Mississippians to vote. In 1976, the South African Students Movement led the Soweto Student Uprising against apartheid. It is estimated
that 10,000 students joined this march. Following in the non-violent tradition of African-American civil rights movement, these students were asking for equity, justice, and fair representation. This did not stop the police and military from killing many. How many? No one knows. Reports vary from 20 to over 200. In the 1980s, students from South Africa continued these protests. Efforts inspired others all over the world, including students in Pittsburgh — including me — to march in protest to the racist segregation in South Africa. This apartheid system officially began in 1948 and ended in the 1990s, but white supremacy and color-based segregation still exists. 2019: As I typed this, over 1,000 students marched through downtown Pittsburgh, protesting the acquittal of the former East Pittsburgh police officer who took the life of Antwon Rose II. They marched out of anger. They marched out of hope. Some marched because they know they could be the next unarmed child killed; some because they know their skin color acts as a shield against most police brutality. The youth, like so many times before, through clarity of spirit, brought a belief in a better future. We must celebrate the youth, protect the youth, and defend the youth. However, we cannot wash our hands of responsibility by depending solely on the youth. Yes, the children are our future. But guess what? So are we.
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Follow featured contributor Tereneh Idia on Twitter @Tereneh152XX PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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.RESTAURANT REVIEW.
SISTER ACT BY MAGGIE WEAVER MWEAVER@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
A
BOUT A YEAR AGO, rumors of a
new Vietnamese restaurant in East End began circulating. This proved true when sisters Trinh Phan and Trang Somphomphakdy posted a sign reading “we pho realz” on the storefront of what would become Two Sisters Vietnamese Restaurant, Pittsburgh’s newest spot for first-rate pho and traditional Vietnamese cuisine. After almost a year of waiting, Pittsburghers jumped at the restaurant’s soft openings in January of 2019 before its official launch on February 4. Two Sisters is built around family. Phan and Somphomphakdy have relied on the skills of their nieces, Kellie and Tuyen Truong, who run Bahn Mi & Ti in Lawrenceville, as their restaurant solidifies a place in the city. Inside the restaurant, Two Sisters echoes the design of Bahn Mi & Ti: minimalist, modern, and functional. The dining room transitions smoothly from a fast-casual lunch joint to a swanky, first-date approved spot. High ceilings lined with exposed lights warm the space with a soft glow. It feels spacious even when the tables are packed. There are places to tuck away for privacy and spots to people-watch. The decor honors the sisters’ heritage, the focal point being a flowing mural. The one-page menu is as simple as the restaurant’s Instagram bio: “two sisters makin’ pho.” There’s pho, bún (cold vermicelli noodles), and cóm (rice dishes), along with a mix of spring rolls, salads, and specialty drinks. Phan and Somphomphakdy feature a range of traditional Vietnamese dishes but pho is their main focus. Searching for a dish with a bit of spice, .the
CP PHOTO: JARED MURPHY
Two Sisters Vietnamese Restaurant in East Liberty
I opted for a something in between bún and pho — the lemongrass-marinated beef soup. Phan and Somphomphakdy’s sense of flavor is remarkable. All parts of the soup felt deliberate. The meat was tender, bursting with a touch of citrus. Thick noodles filled out the broth, neutralizing pockets of spice.
TWO SISTERS VIETNAMESE RESTAURANT 216 N. Highland Ave., East Liberty. 412-404-2760
Pho is the restaurant’s specialty, but bún (cold vermicelli served with fresh
FAVORITE FEATURES: Spring Roll
Community Table
Leftovers
Half of a spring roll at Two Sisters is the size of two full rolls at any other Vietnamese restaurant. It’s a beautiful rainbow of vegetables in a vessel the size of a king-size Snickers bar.
A large table takes up the center of the restaurant. It’s a natural fit for Two Sisters, the family-centric eatery supporting family-style eating at one community table.
Two Sisters doesn’t joke around about flavor, and they don’t joke around about portion sizes. The bowls of pho are huge — over half of my soup is waiting for me in a takeout container.
vegetables, pork, and a spring roll), rivaled the soup for best dish on the table. It balanced sweet, honey-soaked pork with a douse of fish sauce and tang of pickled carrots. In the end, Two Sisters taught me one thing: broth is the most important part of pho. There was a lot of care that went into that simple beef pho. It didn’t need the vegetables or meat. The broth alone was memorable. On the surface, Two Sisters Vietnamese restaurant seems like a straightforward eatery, but this team of sisters brings a depth to each dish. Phan and Somphomphakdy, from day one, weren’t joking. They are “pho realz” about flavor.
•
Follow staff writer Maggie Weaver on Twitter @magweav
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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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Spoiler alert: this story contains many references to Game Of Thrones across all seasons to-date.
A
WEEK PAST St. Patrick’s Day,
Clover Bar was still glowing green. .It was the bar’s last sign of the holiday, as it was stripped bare and transformed into something new. As the holiday faded, winter started to rise: a Game of Thrones bar was coming to Pittsburgh. This new pop-up is part of a rotating concept put out by MW Hospitality group, who, since November, has been tearing down and rebuilding themed bars in a space near Market Square. It’s an elaborate, fast-paced renovation each time, moving from holiday to holiday with lightning speed. So far, the revolving bar has made its way through Christmas and Hanukkah (Jingle Bar), Valentine’s Day (XO Bar), and St. Patrick’s Day (Clover Bar). Now, it’s taking on the Seven Kingdoms. The Game of Thrones (GoT) bar is an all-out tribute to the popular TV series, from decoration to cocktails. It coincides with the premiere of the show’s final season on April 14. Creating a GoT bar is no small feat. Other holidays are open-ended, as bar manager Shane Wilps puts it, Christmas is all “colors and gifts.” A little bit of wrapping paper and a few ornaments
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PGHCITYPAPER.COM
later, the bar is complete. GoT, on the other hand, is intricately detailed; Wilps is going for it, no-holdsbarred. He’s working with local artists to create monstrous, magnificent decorations. A dragon will hang from the ceiling in front of a pillar converted to represent the Wall of Faces. On one side, Westeros will be fully drawn out, accented with flame-flickering lights. Down the hallway is The Wall embellished with turrets and crows, the path to the bathroom marked by icicles and ravens. House banners will fly high, not to be outdone by the Iron Throne that gazes over the crowd from the front. For the menu, Wilps is working with Ommegang Brewery and its line of GoT-themed brews, along with Johnnie Walker’s White Walker-themed spirit. The cocktail menu lists concoctions like, “Red Wedding,” “Drogon,” and “Wildfire.” The GoT bar will be open for the show’s entire season, starting April 5. Every Sunday night there will be a screening of the latest episode, other nights will be filled with drinking games, trivia, and giveaways. After the show ends in May, Wilps will move on to the next concept. There are no hints to what it might be, though he has a few in mind — even joking that old City Papers will make an appearance.
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331 TECHNOLOGY DRIVE, PITTSBURGH 412-621-1551, ELIZAHOTELINDIGO.COM Set on the site of former iconic iron works, Eliza Furnace, Eliza is an American Bistro exploring classic Pittsburgh flavors, beloved by those that worked the furnaces, combined with the fresh perspective and seasonal sourcing that define what we eat in our region today. Relax with great food, cocktails, and enjoy live entertainment on the rooftop bar.
LEON’S CARIBBEAN
823 E WARRINGTON AVE., ALLENTOWN 412-431-5366 / LEONSCARIBBEAN.COM Family owned and operated since December 2014. Here at Leon’s, we take pride in our recipes and quality of dishes. Simple menu with all the traditional dishes! Leon Sr. has been a chef for 30+ years, mastering the taste everyone has grown to love and can only get at Leon’s.
MERCURIO’S ARTISAN GELATO AND NEAPOLITAN PIZZA 5523 WALNUT ST., SHADYSIDE 412-621-6220 / MERCURIOSGELATOPIZZA.COM Authentic Neapolitan pizza, artisan gelato, and an inviting atmosphere are just a small part of what helps create your experience
TACOS • CHIMICHANGAS BURRITOS • ENCHILADAS
at Mercurio’s Gelato and Pizza in Pittsburgh. It’s not your standard pizza shop; in fact, this isn’t a “pizza shop” at all.
633 SMITHFIELD ST. P G H , PA 15222 4 1 2 .4 7 1 . 83 6 1
PAD THAI NOODLE
4770 LIBERTY AVE, BLOOMFIELD 412-904-1640 PADTHAINOODLEPITTSBURGH.COM This new café in Bloomfield features Thai and Burmese specialties. Standards like Pad Thai and Coconut Curry Noodle are sure to please. But don’t miss out on the Ono Kyowsway featuring egg noodle sautéed with coconut chicken, cilantro and curry sauce.
SUPERIOR MOTORS
1211 BRADDOCK AVE., BRADDOCK 412-271-1022 / SUPERIORMOTORS15104.COM Thoughtfully prepared food, drawing inspiration from Braddock, its people, its history, and its perseverance. The cuisine best represents the eclectic style which has become a trademark of Chef Kevin Sousa. Fine dining in an old Chevy dealership with an eclectic, farm-to-table menu and a community focus.
TOTOPO MEXICAN KITCHEN AND BAR
660 WASHINGTON ROAD, MT. LEBANON 412-668-0773 / TOTOPOMEX.COM Totopo is a vibrant celebration of the culture and cuisine of Mexico, with a focus on the diverse foods served in the country. From Oaxacan tamales enveloped in banana leaves to the savory fish tacos of Baja California, you will experience the authentic flavor and freshness in every bite. They also feature a cocktail menu of tequila-based drinks to pair the perfect margarita with your meal.
The best gifts are edible. 1910 New Texas Rd. Pittsburgh, PA 15239 724.519.7304 EightyAcresKitchen.com PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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CP PHOTOS: JARED WICKERHAM
NVSV
.MUSIC.
TAP “YES” OR “NO” BY JORDAN SNOWDEN // JSNOWDEN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
O
NE OF NVSV’S biggest pet peeves lately is Instagram polls. More specifically, when musicians use the social media feature to ask whether a new song should be dropped. Tap “Yes” or “No.” “I think they’re giving too much control to other people,” says NVSV (pronounced “NASA”). “I feel like that’s how [artists] make things now, to satisfy people and not to satisfy themselves. I don’t think
you should go into creating music that way.” For NVSV, aka Aaron Adkinson, an artist’s work should be, simply, about the music. That’s why he released his latest album, Amethyst, with barely any promotion. “I hate when people send me links to posts and they’re like, ‘Can you retweet this for me?’” says Adkinson. “Or [they] tag me on Facebook and there’s like a hundred people tagged to a link to
a song, I feel like that’s not even about the music anymore. You’re just trying to gain numbers.” Once Adkinson dropped Amethyst, he did post a few self-made promo videos on Instagram and Facebook to let fans know that new music was out there and available to enjoy, but that’s as far as he went. There’s a fine line, the Baltimore native explained, between promotion and spam. “It’s something that you have to be comfortable CONTINUES ON PG. 20
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LANDMARKS PRESERVATION RESOURCE CENTER
- A program of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Foundation
JOIN US AT THE LANDMARKS PRESERVATION RESOURCE CENTER FOR ONGOING WORKSHOPS AS WE CONTINUE PROGRAMMING ON ARCHITECTURE, HISTORY, DESIGN, URBAN PLANNING, AND OTHER TOPICS RELATED TO HOW CITIES FUNCTION AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION AS A TOOL OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
THURSDAY, APRIL 11 • 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM LECTURE: PAINTING FOR PRESERVATION PRESENTER: CORY BONNET • PAINTER Through a series of false starts, stubbornness and a focus on incremental improvement, Pittsburgh painter Cory Bonnet found himself in a unique position of telling the story of preservation and sustainable building through painting. One of the main goals of his work is to develop a sense of belonging and community, he says, connecting people to their built environment and helping them understand their place in the continuing history of neighborhoods. Preservation, he contends, helps show how people in the past contributed to creating neighborhoods and a sense of identity and the idea that people are a part of the bigger picture. ABOUT THE PRESENTER: Cory Bonnet is a Pittsburgh oil painter and preservationist who paints contemporary nostalgic scenes of Pittsburgh and the surrounding area using salvaged and reclaimed materials. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drawing from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Named the “2017 Preservationist of the Year,” by the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh, Bonnet was recently profiled in the winter issue of Preservation Magazine.
THIS WORKSHOP IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. RSVPS ARE APPRECIATED: MARYLU@PHLF.ORG OR 412-471-5808 EXT. 527. 744 REBECCA AVENUE
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WILKINSBURG, PA 15221
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with as an artist yourself, and the image that you’re portraying, or the person,” says Adkinson. “I don’t want to be the guy that’s like, a plant, that’s trying to get people to fuck with me just because. Like ‘He’s such a friendly guy, he’s so personable’ like, I’m all that, but first and foremost I want you to fuck with the music, and we’ll take care of everything else after that.” Adkinson is at the point in his life where honesty and transparency come first. Those themes are found throughout the 13 tracks of Amethyst. In the rap-laden “Scripture,” Adkinson pays homage to the music he listened to growing up, when rappers “spit bars” for the entirety of a song. Or the emotional “Fallen,” with the lyrics “Nothing’s the same in the fall/ Nothing’s the same when you fall/They might hang up when you call” rapped over the looping verse, “Watch me fall/ I’m falling, falling, falling.” During the creation of Amethyst, Adkinson was going through a rough patch. His relationship with Library Collaborative, his label at the time, was coming to an end. He was drunk with power, lust, money. “I just put that into music, and that became Amethyst,” says Adkinson. “It was kind of like a venting process, but I made it catchy. It was like a burden releasing;
counseling was the instrumental.” Amethyst is a reflection of that time. Along with being Adkinson’s birthstone, amethysts are said to have healing properties, to ward off demons of drunkenness. The album is the most sincere and open Adkinson has ever been. “It’s the space I’ve been living in and creating in, as of recently,” says Adkinson. “It’s dope to hear the evolution of my music because they all exude different feelings. They’re not the same, and they’re all something different. So Amethyst is definitely that, it’s my truth, vulnerability, transparency.”
NVSV
OPENING FOR BRITTNEY CHANTELE Fri., April 19. 8 p.m. Cattivo, 146 44th St., Lawrenceville. $10. facebook.com/NVSVsound
Intentional or not, this theme of straightforwardness rolled over into Adkinson’s self-promotion, or lack thereof. “I didn’t want to seem like this image of a person and not a real person who’s a musician,” he says. “Maybe I should have emailed press kits out, maybe I should have done all that shit, I know how to do it, but I don’t know I just wanted to satisfy myself, because first and foremost, it’s about the music.”
•
Follow staff writer Jordan Snowden on Twitter @snowden_jordan
.MUSIC.
THE The 412 is Pittsburgh City Paper’s new music section where you can get local band/musician updates and fun, random tidbits of information all in one. BY JORDAN SNOWDEN // JSNOWDEN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
N
IGHTMARATHONS’ DEBUT full-length album, Missing Parts, may be fresh to the music circuit, but it stirs feelings of punk nostalgia. Tracks like “Closer,” about the cycle of damaging addictions, resembles the punk of the late ’90s and early ’00s – rife with guitar, fast rhythms, and a focus on the melody. For the four band members, however, the throwback sound was merely a natural reflection of their experience in the punk scene. “I’m just old,” says Corey. “I’ve always been in bands like this. So, I’m not being nostalgic in the least. I only know how to write songs that sound like this.” Together, Corey, Stowe, Chris, and Tim (the members prefer to use first names) have been in more than 10 bands. And as Stowe pointed out, “everybody in this band owns a home.” Nightmarathon has only gotten better with age. “This is easily the best sounding record I’ve ever been a part of,” says Corey. “We managed to capture this sound that I’ve kind of always had in my mind when writing songs,” adds Stowe. Released on March 29 via A-F Records, Nightmarathons will hold an album release show for Missing Parts at Howlers on Fri., April 5 before embarking on a 16-city tour. To prepare, Stowe is hoarding audiobooks and podcasts, Chris is packing his toothbrush and instrument gear, and Corey is drinking beer, watching baseball, and listening to the new Bob Mould record.
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Want to be featured in a 412? Have exciting music news? Email music writer Jordan Snowden at jsnowden@pghcitypaper.com.
PHOTO: ARETE SOPHIST
Nightmarathons
QUESTIONS ABOUT MUSIC BEST LIVE SHOW YOU’VE EVER SEEN? CHRIS: Possibly Tom Petty. I’m actually not even a huge Tom Petty fan but he really gave it his all, seemed to really be enjoying himself, making me enjoy the entire show more. FAVORITE PUNK ROCK SONG OF ALL TIME? COREY: Grand Funk Railroad’s “Into The Sun” CHRIS: Punk’s such a super broad category. Favorites come and go. “Facades” by Limp Wrist? STOWE: “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg” by the Ramones IF YOU COULD ONLY LISTEN TO MUSIC WITH HEADPHONES OR VIA SPEAKERS FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE, WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE? COREY: Headphones, because no one can tell you to turn them down. AT WHICH MUSIC VENUE DO YOU ALWAYS FIND YOURSELF? STOWE: Howlers for sure. I also like Gooski’s and Rock Room a bunch.
QUESTION ABOUT TV WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WATCHING ON NETFLIX? CHRIS: Usually whichever newest murder documentary as soon as it’s released or The Toys That Made Us.
QUESTIONS ABOUT FOOD GO-TO BAND PRACTICE SNACK? COREY: Hamm’s STOWE: That Hamm’s Corey brings to practice THE BEST PLACE TO EAT OUTSIDE OF PITTSBURGH? STOWE: Like, outside of Pittsburgh, like, the South Hills? Or, like, planet Earth? If it’s planet Earth, the best place to eat is The Tap in El Paso, Texas.
Pittsburgh’s lone liberal talkshow host for 30+ years Listen live every weekday at 10 a.m. at lynncullen.pghcitypaper.com PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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SEVEN DAYS OF CONCERTS REFLECTION + FLOW WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10
Music and poetry join forces at the Glitter Box Theater when Clara Kent and Corrine Jasmin come together for a one night only performance. Will Kent seduce the crowd with her debut album Aura? Will Jasmin bare her soul reading her poetry collection, Tread? Or will they bring out something new, perhaps a poetry/R&B infusion? Only one thing is for sure — after the performance(s), the pair will chat about navigating their respective projects, followed by a Q&A, giving the audience a chance to interact with the artists and ask about their journeys and struggles. Both projects are deeply personal and hold common ground on healing, cleansing, and empowerment. While their craft as a whole is important, they seldom get the opportunity, whether performing or not, to plunge behind the meaning of the words in front of an audience. 7:30-9:30 p.m. 460 Melwood Ave., Oakland. $8. theglitterboxtheater.com PHOTO: THE 14-40
Clara Kent and Corrine Jasmin
FULL LIST ONLINE pghcitypaper.com
THURSDAY APRIL 4 ROCK GAUCHE. Club Cafe. 8 p.m. South Side. SKULL FIST. Crafthouse Stage and Grill. 7 p.m. Whitehall. NIGHT VAPOR. Mr. Smalls Theatre. 8 p.m. Millvale.
JAZZ ROGER HUMPHRIES AND RH FACTOR. Wallace Whiskey Room. 7 p.m. East Liberty. LOU LUCARELLI. Mansions on Fifth. 5:30 p.m. Shadyside.
COVERS EDDAN SPARKS TRIO. Cioppino Restaurant and Cigar Bar. 7 p.m. Strip District.
ACOUSTIC
COUNTRY JEFF TWEEDY. Carnegie Library Lecture Hall. 7:30 p.m. Oakland.
DJS DJ BOBBY D (BACHATA). Perle Champagne Bar. 9:30 p.m. Downtown.
SURF ROCK SUMMIT. Moondogs. 8 p.m. Blawnox.
ELECTRONIC
FRIDAY APRIL 5
DOWNLINK. The Rex Theater. 7 p.m. South Side.
WORLD THE BATTLE OF SANTIAGO. Brillobox. 9 p.m. Bloomfield.
ROCK/BLUES MILLY, PASS AWAY, RARE FUTURES, LATEWAVES. Black Forge Coffee House. 6:30 p.m. Allentown. CHESTER, BLEACH FUZZ. The Park House. 9:30 p.m. North Side.
CLARA KENT, BRYANA APPLEY, IRAFFS, ABIE L. Wolfie’s Pub. 7 p.m. Downtown.
MIKE MAINS AND THE BRANCHES. Hard Rock Cafe. 8:30 p.m. Station Square.
ALEX TALBOT AND AL REIBER. Spoonwood Brewing. 7 p.m. Bethel Park.
CHIP AND THE CHARGE UPS. The Smiling Moose. 6:30 p.m. South Side.
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THE CONTENDERS. Cioppino Restaurant and Cigar Bar. 7 p.m. Strip District.
DJ JOSEY (DARK DANCE). Belvederes Ultra-Dive. 9:30 p.m. Lawrenceville.
DARYL SHAWN. Scratch Food and Beverage. 8 p.m. Troy Hill.
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THE CLARKS. Jergels. 8:30 p.m. Warrendale.
MESH: FANA, DANA. 3577 Studios. 10 p.m. Polish Hill.
COUNTRY/BLUEGRASS
HIP HOP/ RAP LIL BABY. Stage AE. 7 p.m. North Side.
JAZZ FRED HERSCH TRIO AND ALLAN HARRIS. MCG Jazz. 7 p.m. North Side.
SATURDAY APRIL 6 ELECTRONIC
HAYES CARLL. Club Cafe. 7 p.m. South Side.
FOREST DRIVE WEST. Hot Mass. 12 a.m. Downtown.
JAMEY JOHNSON. The Palace Theatre. 7:30 p.m. Greensburg.
ROCK/PUNK
DEAD AND IN THE WAY. Full Pint Wild Side Pub. 8 p.m. Lawrenceville.
DAN BUBIEN AND THE DELTA STRUTS. Mr. Smalls Theatre. 7 p.m. Millvale.
CLASSICAL GEORGE WINSTON. Carnegie Library Music Hall. 7 p.m. Munhall.
ACOUSTIC PITTSBURGH SONGWRITERS SHOWCASE. Hambones. 8 p.m. Lawrenceville. TODD AND DALE. Bar 3. 8:30 p.m. Millvale.
SWMRS. The Rex Theater. 7 p.m. South Side. KING BUFFALO. Club Cafe. 10:15 p.m. South Side. SUAVITY’S MOUTHPIECE. Howlers. 9 p.m. Bloomfield. REBEL REVOLVER. Grille 565. 8 p.m. Bellevue.
KILLER OF SHEEP. 222 Ormsby. 7 p.m. Mount Oliver. NEOSTEM. Excuses Bar and Grill. 9 p.m. South Side.
COUNTRY/FOLK WHITEY MORGAN. Stage AE. 7 p.m. North Side. KIM RICHEY, JORDIE LANE. Club Cafe. 7 p.m. South Side.
SUNDAY APRIL 7 RAP BIG SMO (COUNTRY). Crafthouse Stage and Grill. 6:30 p.m. Whitehall. EPIC BEARD MEN (INDIE). Spirit. 7 p.m. Lawrenceville.
ROCK
THE PROBABLES. LiveBurghStudio. 7:30 p.m. Glenshaw.
ADRIAN BELEW. The Rex Theater. 7 p.m. South Side.
JAZZ
DAIKAIJU. Howlers. 7 p.m. Bloomfield.
TONY CAMPBELL. Wallace’s Tap Room. 5 p.m. East Liberty.
ACOUSTIC THE LONE BELLOW. Mr. Smalls Theatre. 8 p.m. Millvale.
DJS DJ CRASHZER0, DJ ECLIPSE (CLUB HITS). Cattivo. 10 p.m. Lawrenceville.
FUNK SUNSQUABI. Cattivo. 8 p.m. Lawrenceville.
WE ARE THE UNION. The Smiling Moose. 8 p.m. South Side. I SEE STARS. Spirit. 6:30 p.m. Lawrenceville.
ACOUSTIC DYLAN REYNOLDS. Club Cafe. 8 p.m. South Side.
CLASSICAL FROM BATTLES TO BALLETS. Westminster Presbyterian Church. 2:30 p.m. Upper St. Clair.
Record Store Day 2019 Saturday, April 13
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The Dreamerz
SATURDAY, APRIL 6
It’s not quite warm enough yet to enjoy music outdoors, so pop into the Ace Hotel for an indoor music festival put on by The Dreamz of Music Foundation, a nonprofit organization that aims to support disabled musicians, and Pittsburgh Fringe, an inclusive, open-access performing arts festival. The event is free to attend and includes performances from disabled musicians, aka The Dreamerz, along with over 15 other performers, such as Elias Khouri, Kelly Jones, Island Bwoy, and The Pineapple Alternative — a bill spanning rap, hip hop, rock, reggae, and more. 7-11 p.m. 120 S. Whitfield St., East Liberty. Free. facebook.com/dreamzofmusic
FEI FEI DONG. Kresge Theater. 3 p.m. Oakland. THE FORGOTTEN OFFERINGS. Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall. 4:30 p.m. Oakland.
MONDAY APRIL 8
TUESDAY APRIL 9
POP
FOLK/BLUEGRASS CARRIE NATION AND THE SPEAKEASY. Howlers. 10 p.m. Bloomfield.
WEDNESDAY APRIL 10
THE CACTUS BLOSSOMS. Club Cafe. 8 p.m. South Side.
COUNTY
ROCK/METAL
DJS
REO SPEEDWAGON. The Palace Theatre. 7:30 p.m. Greensburg.
DJ NIGEL, DJ RYO (BLUES). Lot 17. 8 p.m. Bloomfield.
SINMARA. The Smiling Moose. 8 p.m. South Side.
HOT HONEY (DEEP HOUSE). The Summit. 9 p.m. Mt. Washington.
CLASSICAL
PETE BUTTA (REGGAE/ DANCEHALL). The Goldmark. 10 p.m. Lawrenceville.
ARTEMIS STRING QUARTET. Carnegie Music Hall. 7:30 p.m. Oakland.
JAZZ GIANTS OF JAZZ. Mary Pappert School of Music. 7:30 p.m. Downtown. IAN KANE. Hambones. 6:30 p.m. Lawrenceville.
JAZZ DWAYNE DOLPHIN. Backstage Bar. 5 p.m. Downtown.
ROCK/INDIE ALESANA, RED JUMPSUIT APPARATUS. Crafthouse Stage and Grill. 6:30 p.m. Whitehall.
are welcome
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PATTERNIST, DBMK, WALKNEY. The Smiling Moose. 6:30 p.m. South Side.
THE ALLMAN BETTS BAND. Jergels. 8 p.m. Warrendale.
ROCK POLY ACTION. Howlers. 8 p.m. Bloomfield. RED ELVISES. The Hard Rock Cafe. 8 p.m. Station Square. ATLANTIC WASTELAND, HARBORLIGHTS. Cyclops Cafe. 7 p.m. Bellevue.
FOLK/INDIE TOW’RS. Club Cafe. 8 p.m. South Side. THE LAST BISON. The Smiling Moose. 6:30 p.m. South Side. RED TAIL RING. SongSpace Gallery. 7:30 p.m. Shadyside.
These listings are curated by Pittsburgh City Paper’s music writer Jordan Snowden and include events from our free online listings. Submit yours today at www.pghcitypaper.com/submitevent PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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CP ILLUSTRATION: ABBIE ADAMS
.CULTURE.
PARANORMAL PEOPLE BY AMANDA WALTZ // AWALTZ@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
A
FTER 34 YEARS investigating paranormal activity, Brian Seech claims he can always .spot when people are withholding a good story. He cites an experience he had with audience members during a speaking gig at a Bigfoot conference in Fayette County. “I said, ‘How many here have claimed to see a Bigfoot?’ About four or five people put their hands up. I said, ‘Well, you can double that, because I almost guarantee there’s another ten or twelve people that
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aren’t going to raise their hands,’” he says. “And you start scanning the audience and see the looks in people’s eyes or see them talking … some of them will come up to you later and say, ‘You know what, I did see this.’” Seech and his wife, Terrie, are affectionately known as the Mulder and Scully of Beaver County, a title they earned after years of conducting research through the Center for Unexplained Events (CUE) and the Center for Cryptozoological
Studies, groups they founded to investigate reports of UFOs, aliens, ghosts, and cryptids. Along with the Butler Organization for Research of the Unexplained, Seech’s organization co-sponsors the annual Butler Paranormal Conference (April 6 at the Tanglewood Senior Center in Lyndora, Pa.) “The mission [of the conference] is to show that there’s a lot of weird things in the world,” says Seech, adding that the event fosters a judgmentfree zone where enthusiasts and visitors can “feel at
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Men in black pictured with Fred Saluga, director of Fayette County Pa. Bigfoot Research Project, at the 10th Annual Butler Paranormal Conference
home with other people who research these phenomena.” Now in its 12th year, the conference features displays, book signings, and vendor booths offering everything from merchandise to tarot card and psychic readings. There will also be a lineup of first-time guest speakers, with talks on UFOs in the Old West and ghost hunting, and a session with Jeff Wamsley, founder of the Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant, W. Va. Seech says that, while they cover a wide range of subjects, he has noticed some trends. “The hottest topic in the last six or seven years is probably Bigfoot research,” says Seech. Though the elusive ape-like being has fascinated people for generations, including Seech, who became interested in Bigfoot as a kid in 1970s, he credits the mainstream success of television shows like MonsterQuest and Finding Bigfoot for kicking off the current “cryptid craze.” “People are just hooked. They can’t get enough of Bigfoot right now. It’s all Bigfoot, all the time for some of these people,” says Seech. Despite that renewed popularity, there will be no speakers dedicated to Bigfoot at the conference, but it will feature Shetan Noir, a Michigan-based cryptozoology researcher who specializes in weird creatures of the Great Lakes region. Though people are drawn to paranormal research for different reasons, for Seech, the work is all about finding solid, physical evidence of certain creatures known only in folklore and urban legends. This includes the Shenango Dog-Boy of Mercer County, a local figure
Seech discusses in an episode of the “Destination America series Monsters and Mysteries in America. “I’m looking for some sort of encounter,” he says. “I would like validation for myself, because the only way you would prove it to the general public is if there is a specimen brought forth.” While he has yet to run into a Bigfoot or Dog-Boy, he did have a particularly creepy experience five years ago while investigating an alleged haunting in Erie, Pa. Seech claims he, Terrie, and a friend heard footsteps and saw a door shaking in an otherwise empty old church, which stopped as soon as they went to find the cause.
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BUTLER PARANORMAL CONFERENCE
10 a.m.-7 p.m. Sat., April 6. 10 Austin Ave., Lyndora. $15. facebook.com/CenterForUnexplainedEvents
“We were kind of stunned, like, ‘Wow, all three of us heard that,’” says Seech, adding that it would have been impossible for someone to have left without being detected. “They would have had to be faster than Carl Lewis to get out of the church. We believe it was some kind of ghostly phenomena that did that.” No matter where you land on the paranormal belief spectrum, Seech sees the conference as a place for everyone, from paranormal enthusiasts like him to those new to the scene, to come and share their experiences and interests in a welcoming environment. “It’s like a big family,” he says. “Like the Addams family, maybe, but everybody gets along and it’s like a camaraderie.”
•
Follow senior writer Amanda Waltz on Twitter @AWaltzCP PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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PHOTO: MOLLY RICE
A table of Afghan tea and snacks
.STAGE.
NEW NEIGHBORS BY HANNAH LYNN // HLYNN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
A
FGHANISTAN IS a country roughly
the size of Texas, a state with .a variety of landscapes, cities, people, food, and music. Afghanistan has all those things too, but most Americans think only of the country as it is on a Google Image search, a seemingly infinite scroll of war, guns, soldiers, and violence. Molly Rice, a resident artist with the Office of Public Art, is working with local Afghan refugee women to change this perception with Khūrākī, a series of four dinner/theater programs, produced by Rice’s production company, RealTime Interventions. Guests will eat
food made by women whose stories are then performed by actors. Rice spent the first half of her twoyear residency working with the Northern Area Multi-Service Center (NAMS) in its Community Assistance and Refugee Resettlement program. She followed caseworkers, helped with housing setup, and started a sewing group with the women refugees to help them socialize. But NAMS shut down the Refugee Resettlement portion of its programs in September 2018, citing federal policies that have reduced the number of refugees entering the city, which made
KHŪRĀKĪ
7 p.m. Sat., April 6. Union Project. 801 N. Negley Ave., Highland Park. 7 p.m. Mon., April 22. Islamic Center of Pittsburgh, 4100 Bigelow Blvd., Oakland. 7 p.m. Mon., May 6. Alphabet City, 40 W. North Ave., North Side. Suggested $20 donation. realtimeinterventions.org
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running the program unsustainable. Still, Rice went on working with the women, interacting, observing, and learning from them for a year and a half before even planning her residency project. After learning that the women were passionate about cooking and interested in starting some kind of food business, Rice, a playwright, combined their skills with her storytelling for a program that showcases both the cooking and stories of the women. “We’re really using the theatrical part to A) introduce people to the cooking and B) create an environment where they have to work on things like timing and how to follow safety guidelines in a commercial kitchen,” says Rice. The women previously only had experience cooking in home kitchens. A majority of the event’s proceeds will go
toward helping the women start their own businesses. Rice notes that while many refugees are fleeing general threats within their home country, many of the Afghan refugees come to the U.S. on a Special Immigrant Visa, which is given to those who have worked for or with the U.S. military and have received direct threats from the Taliban. “The women, I found when I would go to their events and go to their homes, they’re really still isolated,” says Rice. “They’re coming from an environment where they’re systemically isolated.” But when they started talking about food, they were “so full of confidence.” The meals in Khūrākī include classic Afghan dishes like Kofta, a type of meatball, and Bolani, a flatbread stuffed with vegetables. The April 6 show will feature
Ay Khanum, a rose-shaped dumpling. Each of the four events are staged in a different neighborhood (Millvale, Highland Park, Oakland, and North Side), with a certain number of tickets set aside for residents of each neighborhood. Accompanying the food is a performance by professional actors, written by Rice, based on the women’s lives. Music by CMU grad students will accompany the meal and performance. Since the women were not interested in performing their stories themselves, Rice held auditions and had the women pick which actors would portray them. Tressa Glover, an actor portraying one of the women, says the audition process was emotional for everyone involved. “That callback was so much more than an audition,” says Glover. “By the end of the night, there was this bond that had formed between all of us.”
“...THEY WANTED TO SHOW AFGHANISTAN AS AMERICA HAD NEVER SEEN IT” Part of the learning process for the actors involved bonding with the women, cooking with them at their homes, and trading stories about their lives. It helped create the kind of intimacy needed to step into performing as someone who is not only in the room, but cooked the food the audience is eating. It’s a fine line to tow, especially since none of the actors are Afghan. Rice says they took as the guiding question for the series “What do you want Americans to know about you and your country?” “They said that they felt the story had always been about war and conflict in America and they wanted to show Afghanistan as America had never seen it, and that’s with all its beauty, all its culture, the music, the food, the full experience of this beautiful country,” says Rice. Even though they aren’t performing themselves, the event is ultimately all about the women, their stories, and their food.
•
Follow staff writer Hannah Lynn on Twitter @hanfranny PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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.STAGE.
BACKSTAGE BY LISSA BRENNAN CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
NAME: Jackie Baker, Mount Lebanon WORK: Managing Director, Bricolage Production Company
WHAT DOES A MANAGING DIRECTOR DO? I mobilize an army of people around an artistic concept so it can become a reality. There’s an idea that barely makes up a paragraph living inside our artistic director [Jeffrey Carptenter]’s head. I take that out, slowly, over time; carefully, so as not to stifle creativity. I help communicate what it means to a variety of different constituents who will be working on that thing that just lives inside his head. HOW? First by building trust. Money should serve art. I am there to say yes and figure out how and make sure people are paid for their art, as opposed to taking an idea and distilling it into something more palatable and easier to sell. Which luckily, here, the audience is there for. I don’t have to water it down. AND HERE THAT MEANS BOTH UNIQUE PROJECTS AND ONGOING ONES? We have programs consistently running that sustain us that we don’t have to make many new decisions about. That allows room to create completely new things, primarily immersive works. FOR WHICH YOU’RE FINDING EVERYONE IS INVOLVED IN THE THINGS THEY NEED TO MAKE WHAT THEY WANT? I try to give them what they need to make their vision happen so that they remain inspired and have the biggest artistic endeavors possible. IS THIS EASIER IN PITTSBURGH’S OVERLAPPING COMMUNITIES AS YOU’RE LOOKING FOR THINGS ATYPICAL TO THEATER? It is very Pittsburgh that, when I have to find pedicabs we can operate ourselves for a dollar, that I know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy who has
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CP PHOTO: JARED MURPHY
Jackie Baker
four of them sitting in a garage somewhere near the Mon. But it only serves you, or should, in my opinion, if you’re giving as well as asking. I’m not just going to make calls and say, “Can I have this?” I’m going to make sure that every time I get a call, I try to say yes because we all need each other so much. HOW DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION? The sheer balls behind the ideas that [co-founders] Jeff and Tami have. They have ideas that sound so insurmountable — and then we make them happen. Practically, I’m looking at the best of the best; people who are marrying the needs of the community to a nonprofit mission with the goal to make amazing theater — and money! — over time and
be sustainable. It’s a managing director’s terrifying, glorious dreamboat. DO PEOPLE KNOW THAT THERE’S BUSINESS BEHIND ART? Not in the least. Most people don’t think of nonprofits as a tax status, but a legal requirement to not make any money. Unlike a corporation, I can’t just bring in a bunch of money, pay a bunch of taxes, and then do it with that whatever I want. I have 25 different pools of funding with separate legal restrictions. But I need a business model that works, just like incorporation. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR PROUDEST MOMENT? The moment that the DODO banner fell. This was a show we did at the Carnegie
Museums of Art and Natural History. These enormous banners hang outside their institution promoting what’s going on inside. We’re a small company. My budget for large-scale outdoor marketing is non-existent, but they wanted us in our space and made it happen. We got to stand outside and see the seniormost banner on an amazing historic institution for the show that was just a thought a few years ago and now, “Look how real it is.” But personally, we did a show called The Forest of Everywhere for kids with sensory sensitivities such as autism, which my nephew was diagnosed with. He was sitting in a tent with a crocodile reading a book, and he was still, and he was attentive, and he was full of magic. And I just sat there and cried.
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FEATURED ON INK MASTER :ANGELS
.LITERATURE .
FAMILY REUNION
PYRAMID
TATTOO
BY REGE BEHE CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
R
& Body Piercing
EADERS WERE FIRST introduced
to the Pittsburgh-based Maxwell family in Stewart O’Nan’s 2002 novel Wish You Were Here. He checked back in with the widowed Emily Maxwell in 2011’s Emily Alone. And now O’Nan revisits the family once more with his new novel, Henry, Himself. “I was just thinking, ‘What’s the next project?’” says the Regent Square-based author and Pittsburgh native. “What story do I know that I haven’t told?” That’s when Henry Maxwell re-appeared. The husband of Emily Maxwell, Henry is a World War II veteran, 75 years old when the story takes place in 1998. Henry suffers from the normal aches and pains that come with aging. He worries about finances to the point that he becomes flustered when he brings the wrong coupon to a store, even though the family is relatively well off. He attends church every Sunday, but often loses track of the other days of the week. But Henry’s preoccupation with the mundane doesn’t obscure his extraordinary character, which O’Nan gradually reveals.
HENRY, HIMSELF LAUNCH PARTY
7 p.m. Tue., April 9. White Whale Bookstore, 4754 Liberty Ave., Bloomfield. Free. 412-224-2847 or whitewhalebookstore.com
“What was he supposed to be?” says O’Nan. “As an American man in the mid20th century, what were his privileges, what were his obligations, what were the responsibilities that he felt? So, it became a book that was a life story. Emily’s was a life story, and I thought Henry’s story would be a bookend to it.” O’Nan’s nuanced portrayal slowly emerges over the course of 370 pages, Henry a reluctant subject. Like so many men of his era, especially veterans, Henry is reticent to talk about himself or his feelings, and often reverts to a childhood preoccupation.
PHOTO: BETH NAVARRO
Stewart O’Nan
“In everything that he does, Henry hides away,” O’Nan says. “He hides away from his children; he hides away from Emily. Even as a child, that was his favorite thing, to hide. He’s very private, and I think that’s true with that generation of men.” What also emerges is an entirely different portrait of Emily. In Emily, Alone, devastated by her husband’s death, a softer side of her personality appeared. But the Emily readers meet in Henry, Himself is feistier, more prone to confrontation, even a bit prickly, at least through Henry’s eyes. “I have to be totally true to Henry and the way Henry sees the world,” O’Nan says. “Henry has the same soft spots and the same resentments for someone who he’s been with for 48 years. They’ve learned to abide with each other. Of course, they have their own problems too. It’s the story of a marriage, and we learn the most important things: How they met and how they courted and how they came together and what they think of each other. And now they’re with each other
almost all the time.” Henry, Himself has a wistful, at times nostalgic, quality. O’Nan colors the narrative with references to former Pittsburgh institutions: the Tin Angel, Three Rivers Stadium, Pirates catcher Jason Kendall, and Steelers’ quarterback Kordell Stewart. But these details are just background. “There’s always a push to find that story that hasn’t been told,” O’Nan says. “At one point I wrote a piece for a newspaper about that idea of what [President Richard] Nixon and Nixon’s handlers called the ‘silent majority’ in America. And Henry definitely fits that idea of a silent majority. He would never raise his voice, and certainly not about anything political. And yet, he represents a lot of what America is, and still is. I don’t think it’s changed that much in generations. Looking at myself and my father, if we are the templates for what Henry is throughout his life, I see the same things in myself, and the same things in my father, in Henry and his father. I see a lot of that same attitude towards life.”
PYRAMIDTATTOO.COM
BRIDGEVILLE, PA
blogh.pghcitypaper.com
Work yourself into a lather. Rinse. Repeat.
•
Follow featured contributor Rege Behe on Twitter @RegeBehe_exPTR PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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.JUST JAGGIN’.
JEFF VERSZYLA WEATHERS THE WINDS OF CHANGE BY JOSH OSWALD // JOSWALD JOSWALD@PGHCITYPAPER.COM JOSWALD@PGHCITYPAPER @PGHCITYPAPER COM
J
EFF VERSZYLA is in the running for Best Meteorologist in Pittsburgh Magazine’s Best of the ‘Burgh Readers’ Poll. This is not surprising considering Verszyla has more than 20 years in broadcast meteorology, a 2014 Emmy Award for his coverage, and a loyal fan base. What is surprising is what Verszyla doesn’t have: a job with a local news station. Last December, Verszyla was let go from his forecasting role at KDKA-TV after almost a quarter century of employment. There was little explanation given to Verszyla by the affiliate, confusing both him and his fans. “This was kind of new territory for me,” says Verszyla. “I didn’t know how to act.” But as his fans took to social media to express their sympathy and shock, Verszyla quickly realized that being let go from his job didn’t mean that he had to abandon the viewership he had fostered over the past 23 years. “I didn’t go into a shell right away,” says Verszyla. “After that length of time, you develop relationships with viewers, people that you’ve never met, where they trust you, and they interact with you through social media now. And those people reached out right away and were so supportive and embracing me and my situation.”
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CP PHOTOS: JARED WICKERHAM
Jeff Verszyla hosts “WhiteBoard Weather” inside his home
So with the support of his fans and the inability to escape the grip of a routine almost three decades in the making, Verszyla began delivering what he has dubbed “WhiteBoard Weather” reports on Facebook Live from his study, his backyard, and even the parking lot of his local Giant Eagle Market District. “I never thought that in a million years I’d be walking into Staples the Monday after I was let go and buying a whiteboard and markers and saying these are the tools of my trade,” he says. But to watch Verszyla casually queue up a background-music playlist on a rolling PA system, prop up his elaborately detailed whiteboard on his office loveseat, log into Facebook live, and begin greeting the viewers who join one by one, it feels like he has been producing a one-man weather broadcast his entire career.
Verszyla delivers an efficient 15-minute broadcast that includes interacting with fans from all over the tri-state area and a daily recitation of celebrity birthdays to add some levity. He rounds out each video with a detailed forecast that combines interpretation of surface maps on his laptop, a hand-drawn whiteboard full of infographics, and a veteran weather analysis delivered without hesitation as he swivels in his desk chair and manipulates his smartphone as his sole “camera person.” “I think that first week honestly was people who wanted the weather information but also were there to see if I was going to lose my mind,” Verszyla mused. “At the end of the day, I think it was very therapeutic for me to overcome in a very timely way my situation. And for the people who were used to
getting information from me to know they still had that option available.”
WHITEBOARD WEATHER pittsburghweathernow.com and Twitter.com/Verz
The results of his DIY weather forecast have been impressive. Not only is he nominated as Pittsburgh’s best meteorologist in a field otherwise occupied by nominees who have the benefit of a fully equipped studio, but his WhiteBoard Weather broadcasts have been popular enough to garner two partners, a handful of sponsors, and a brand new website (pittsburghweathernow.com) that will host his forecasts, usersubmitted photos, explainer videos, landscaping tips, and a golfer’s forecast
sponsored by Moon Golf Club. “While I love doing the weather, the challenge is you have to put food on the table so you want to try to monetize what you can,” Verszyla says, with a refreshing frankness. “Initially, as it kept going, it was like, ‘we’ll keep riding this wave.’” Pittsburghers are loyal if not a little bit stubborn. We stick with the people, players, and TV personalities who have made the effort to stick with us. And that dedication is definitely working in Verszyla’s favor. “There is a connection that people develop here that may be different in other cities and TV markets. I think certain people just kind of gravitate to people they identify with. It doesn’t necessarily always have to be someone who is from here, but in my case it was. I’m a Pittsburgh guy … Long before I was ever on TV.”
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Follow digital media manager Josh Oswald on Twitter @gentlemenRich PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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GROWING, KIND OF BY HANNAH LYNN HLYNN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
PHOTO: ELIZABETH SISSON/NETFLIX
Amy Schumer’s new stand-up special Growing
In her 2019 Netflix stand-up special, Growing, Amy Schumer would like her fans and enemies to know that she’s different now, that she’s married and pregnant, but also that she’s exactly the same. She’s done with her wild partying days, yet still relishing in the grossness of being alive. Schumer joins comedian Ali Wong, who had two Netflix stand-up specials while pregnant, in a new genre of comedy that never flinches from the most grotesque aspects of having a baby, pushing back against the aggressively sunny portrait of motherhood made popular by mommy bloggers. Schumer discusses her struggle with hyperemesis, a condition that causes her to vomit nearly every GROWING day of her is now pregnancy. streaming on She also covers Netflix tampons, porn, sex positions, and sexual harassment. Some of the jokes land. Many don’t. It feels simultaneously contemporary and stale. The biggest flaw with Growing is Schumer’s attempts to relate. She makes generalizations about what We As Women go through that are either so specific they aren’t relatable or so broad they don’t even apply to her. She makes the trendy choice of distancing herself from millennials, despite being one at 37. “Millennials, if you don’t know what a tampon is …” she says. In a joke about working harder than her male partner during sex, she joked, “You’ve had a long day making more money than me.” It’s a fair bet that the highly successful Schumer has made more than her partners for a long time. Her honesty can be refreshing, but can also feel opportunistic, like she’s following a formula to appeal to the audience. •
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PHOTO: GOOD DEED ENTERTAINMENT
.FILM.
Matthew Broderick and Géza Röhrig
TO DUST BY HANNAH LYNN // HLYNN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
N
OBODY ACTUALLY KNOWS what happens to us when we die, spiritually. And aside from morticians, most people don’t know what happens to our bodies, physically, when we die either. The science of decomposition is especially a mystery to Shmuel, a Hasidic Jewish man mourning the death of his wife in To Dust, a drama about unmanageable grief. Directed by Shawn Snyder, the film follows Shmuel as he attempts to understand what is happening to his wife’s body in the ground, with help from an aloof biology professor. Shmuel (Géza Röhrig) can’t stop dreaming about his wife’s toe rotting underground. He’s plagued by visions of her body decaying for weeks and months after her death. He fears that, until her body is fully returned to the earth, her soul is suffering. His mother begs him to pull it together. His rabbi tries to talk him through the grief, but it’s not enough. His kids, seeing the hollow shell of their father, become convinced he’s possessed by a dybbuk (a Jewish demon). Not satisfied with the spiritual explanation, Shmuel seeks a scientific one from community college biology professor Albert (Matthew Broderick). After initially trying to brush off Shmuel and his unending
questions, Albert reluctantly assists in the journey, which includes burying a dead pig two different times.
TO DUST
Directed by Shawn Snyder Opens Fri., April 5 at Regent Square Theater
In some ways, To Dust is a classic buddy film pairing—one straight-laced character and one more chill (Albert smokes weed once). But it’s not exactly overplayed to see a biology professor and a Hasidic cantor paired together. There is so much focus on their personality differences that you forget one of the key reasons for conflict is that highly devout people like Shmuel don’t learn about science in the same way as everyone else because it directly conflicts with religious teachings. He is focused on the Old Testament quote from which the movie’s title is drawn: “Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return unto God who gave it.” Shmuel is shocked when he digs up a grave and sees that the body has not actually turned to dust. The movie works best when it zooms in on the details of grief, like Shmuel’s sons whispering into his foot for the dybbuk to leave him alone, or Albert
yelling “Killing a pig won’t bring your wife back!” The movie is at its worst when trying to forge some meaning out of Shmuel and Albert’s relationship, which never deepens, despite a 750-mile road trip to a body farm. While Shmuel shares intimate details about his feelings, the audience learns nothing about Albert, his personal life, or why he would be inclined to go on such a journey with a stranger. Although Shmuel evolves, it remains unclear why his grief has manifested in such a way that even the rabbi can’t understand. A few of his characteristics sometimes feel like a caricature, as when he needs an empty jar to collect soil from his wife’s grave and empties an unopened jar of gefilte fish into the toilet. Surely, there must have been an easier way to obtain a vessel. To Dust doesn’t work much of the time. It’s occasionally slow, clunky, and tonally confusing. But even at its weaker points, the film still tackles its subject with heart. Shmuel’s grief is palpable, and his questions about death are universal. How do you move on with your life when the person you love is being devoured by maggots before turning into soil? The answer isn’t simple and looks different for everyone. There’s no wrong way to mourn—even gravedigging can be cathartic.
•
The Romeo Club of MASD proudly presents
“America’s Premier Showman”
Mark Milovats And His Orchestra Saturday, May 4th 7PM
McKeesport High School Auditorium 1960 Eden Park Blvd, McKeesport, PA 15132 ARTWORK: JOSIE NORTON
.STAGE.
Featuring the McKeesport Band & Choir
Admission: $20 Tickets available through 412.999.9922 or Romeotickets@yahoo.com
GET A CLUE BY AMANDA WALTZ // AWALTZ@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
L
OCAL IMPROV COMEDIAN Dave Forman has always looked on as .other people put on live reads of their favorite TV shows and movies at Arcade Comedy Theater. But now, Forman, along with members of his improv group, Well Known Strangers, will present their own live read of the mystery-comedy film, Clue. “Clue is absolutely one of my favorites,” says Forman, who’s directing the show. “I remember just loving it as a child and renting it all the time.” He adds that the film is beloved by Well Known Strangers, calling the live read a “labor of love” for many of the group’s members. Based on the eponymous board game, the 1985 film follows several strangers invited to a dinner party at a secluded mansion, where their evening soon gives way to murderous hijinks. Clue flopped at the box office upon its release but found a cult following among fans who appreciated its farcical humor and inventive storytelling. Forman says much of the film’s charm lies in its quick, snappy, highly quotable dialogue, which he believes will translate well in a live read. He also cites the outstanding ensemble cast, including Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, the late Madeline Kahn, and character actor Tim Curry, who Forman says carries the film beautifully as the butler, Wadsworth. “It’s really a who’s who of comedians and great improvisers, and you could tell how much fun they had with the film,” says Forman. The live read — which has three performances April 4-6 — features eight cast members playing the main char-
acters, including actor Jason Shavers as Wadsworth, and Abby Fudor and Michael McBurney of Arcade Comedy, who will play Mrs. White and Professor Plum, respectively. Five other players will take turns portraying murder victims and other minor roles. In terms of production, the cast will remain seated for much of the show, with some movement for certain scenes. Props will be kept to a minimum, while visual elements like projections will be used to create the illusion of being inside separate rooms when characters explore the mansion.
LIVE READ: CLUE
Showtimes vary. Starts April 4. 943 Liberty Ave., Downtown. $12. BYOB. arcadecomedytheater.com
As for costuming, they plan to go all out. “I have a lot of ideas on where to take the costumes,” says Forman. “So much is borrowed heavily from the film. The costumes they wore were so iconic – Mrs. Peacock with her glasses, Wadsworth and his tuxedo. There will be a lot of little fun nods here and there to the characters from the film.” While most of the setting and other elements are stripped down, Forman assures that the show will stick to the film’s running time and its most memorable asset – the multiple conclusions, where Wadsworth reveals how the murders could have played out. “We’re not gonna drop any chandeliers or anything, but we’re really keeping to the dialogue and all the endings,” says Forman.
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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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SPIRIT TURNS FOUR BY JORDAN SNOWDEN JSNOWDEN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
PHOTO: DAGGERS FOR EYES
Shilpa Ray
This Friday, Spirit celebrates its fourth birthday with national and local musical performances, along with free pizza and tattoos. Yes, free tattoos. Provided on a first come first served basis by Torch and Dagger Tattoo, the tattoo options are all quirky little things about Spirit — a pizza slice, Angry Dan’s hand (who MCs trivia and makes Spirit’s pasta and bagels), 3D glasses in honor of the doorman named 3D, and a can of PBR, Spirit’s sponsor, to name a few. “We’re excited to turn four and that we’re here and part of the community,” says Leigh Yock, events manager and co-owner. “Some of the acts on the bill that have performed SPIRIT TURNS 4 Fri., April 5. 9 p.m.–2 a.m. with us 242 51st St., Lawrenceville. since the beginning.” $15-20. spiritpgh.com Slated to play is Dan Deacon (Baltimore), Shilpa Ray (Brooklyn), and Joe Bickle (Los Angeles), along with local acts BjORDAN, Swampwalk, LA’VENDER FREDDY, The Luxury Cavemen (DJs Maxx T. & Ani), DJ Yamez, and RB. Since its creation in 2015, Spirit has constantly been improving. Yock says, “every time you walk in something is different, even if [that] something is small.” Recently those changes include an updated dinner menu, homemade ice cream, and a brand new sound system in the Hall. Spirit’s next big project is a rooftop garden. They currently take care of a garden to the left side of the building, which is owned by the city. Along with aiding the community ascetically, herbs from the garden are used in cocktails and as pizza toppings. Spirit’s come a long way in the short time since it was the Moose Lodge, and they want to celebrate the occasion with everyone. •
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CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM
Spirit in Lawrenceville
.MUSIC.
VENUE GUIDE: SPIRIT BY JORDAN SNOWDEN // JSNOWDEN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
H
EADING TO A venue for the first time can be anxiety-inducing or at the very least cause inconveniences. Where’s will call? Is there parking? Will you have to hide your expensive bag behind a tree because it’s too big to pass security? Pittsburgh City Paper wants to help make attending shows as comfortable as possible. So, welcome to our venue guide, where you can find out what to wear, where to smoke, and everything in between. CP will detail the ins and outs of venues in Pittsburgh, so you can fully enjoy the experience and not worry about little nuisances like not knowing the bar was cash-only. In 2015, Moose Lodge 581 in Upper Lawrenceville became Spirit, a two-level bar, restaurant, and event space. Open Tuesday through Sunday, Spirit’s downstairs area, the Lodge, is open whether or not there is an event. Visitors in the Lodge can grab food or drinks and, on certain nights, see local and regional musical acts, play trivia or bingo, and even enjoy a comedy show. The Hall, found upstairs, is only open when an event is taking place.
SMOKING
FOOD & BEVERAGE
TRANSPORTATION
• Non-smoking venue (this includes vapes) • Smoking is allowed out front, and reentry is permitted • Smoking is also permitted on Spirit’s back patio, but of respect for their neighbors, the patio closes at 11 p.m. on weekdays and at midnight on the weekends
THE LODGE (DOWNSTAIRS)
• Spirit is a very accessible venue with plenty of parking • Bike racks in front of the venue • Walkable for those living in or visiting the Lawrenceville area • 87, 91, and 93 buses get within walking distance
BATHROOMS • Men and women’s bathrooms on both floors • There is one ADA compliant restroom located on the bottom floor near the kitchen
• Full bar and food menu • Cash, credit, and debit are accepted • Open kitchen with food available for dine in or take out THE HALL (UPSTAIRS)
• Limited bar menu, three drafts available, and limited can and cocktail options • Pizza by the slice available. For full menu, go downstairs
ACCESSIBLY • The Lodge is ADA compliant. A ramp is located in the back of the venue, at the patio entrance. • At this time, the Hall is not ADA compliant
MORE VENUE TIPS ONLINE AT PGHCITYPAPER.COM
Sponsored by
EARLY WARNINGS SPONSORED UPCOMING EVENTS FROM CITY PAPER’S FINE ADVERTISERS
WED., APRIL 17 THE 69 EYES 7:30 P.M. CRAFTHOUSE SOUTH HILLS. $20-99. 412-653-2695 or ticketfly.com. With special guests mxms, The Nocturnal Affair, & Unbroken Soul.
WED., APRIL 17 WANNABE: SPICE GIRLS TRIBUTE 7:30 P.M. JERGEL’S RHYTHM GRILLE WARRENDALE. $12-20. 724-799-8333 or ticketfly.com.
FRI., APRIL 19 HERE COME THE MUMMIES
WED., APRIL 17 DEREK HOUGH 7:30 P.M. BENEDUM CENTER DOWNTOWN. $59.50-800. 412-456-6666 or trustarts.org.
REX THEATER SOUTH SIDE
MOVIES PRESENTS ‘HOP’
THU., APRIL 18 POP EVIL
7 P.M. CARP FIELD DEER LAKES PARK. Free event. Alleghenycounty.us/parkprograms.
8 P.M. JERGEL’S RHYTHM GRILLE WARRENDALE. $25-39 724-799-8333 or ticketfly.com. With specials guests Memphis May Fire, Messer, & After The Fall.
FRI., APRIL 19 ANA POPOVIC
THU., APRIL 18 SHE KILLS MONSTERS 8 P.M. AUGUST WILSON CENTER DOWNTOWN. $10-25. 412-456-6666 or trustarts.org.
THU., APRIL 18 LOUD LUXURY 9 P.M. FOXTAIL SOUTH SIDE. Over-18 event. $20-30. 412-651-4713 or ticketfly.com.
FRI., APRIL 19 HERE COME THE MUMMIES 8 P.M. REX THEATER SOUTH SIDE. Over-21 event. $26-28. 412-381-1681 or greyareaprod.com. With special guests Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers.
FRI., APRIL 19 L.L BEAN FULL MOON HIKE 6:30 P.M. NORTH PARK PIE TRAYNOR FIELD NORTH PARK. Over-8 event. Free (registration required). Llbean.com/pittsburgh.
FRI., APRIL 19 FAMILY FUN NIGHT AT THE
8 P.M. JERGEL’S RHYTHM GRILLE WARRENDALE. $20-35. 724-799-8333 or ticketfly.com.
SAT., APRIL 20 STARSHIP MANTIS 7 P.M. CATTIVO LAWRENCEVILLE. Over-21 event. $12. 412-687-2157 or ticketfly.com. With special guests Benji. & DJ Femi.
SAT., APRIL 20 CRUEL INTENTIONS: THE ‘90S MUSICAL 8 P.M. BYHAM THEATER DOWNTOWN. $49-69. 412-456-6666 or trustarts.org.
SAT., APRIL 20 SAVED BY THE 90S 9 P.M. JERGEL’S RHYTHM GRILLE WARRENDALE. $12-30. 724-799-8333 or ticketfly.com.
SAT., APRIL 20 KISS THE SKY: JIMI HENDRIX TRIBUTE 9:30 P.M. HARD ROCK CAFE STATION SQUARE. $14-16. 412-481-ROCK or ticketfly.com.
SAT., APRIL 20
MATCH GAYME: CHER & CHER ALIKE 10:30 P.M. GREER CABARET THEATER DOWNTOWN. Over-21 event. $26.25-31.25. 412-456-6666 or trustarts.org.
SUN., APRIL 21 THE BOOK OF MORMON 1 P.M. HEINZ HALL DOWNTOWN. $56-156. 412-392-4900 or pittsburghsymphony.org.
MON., APRIL 22 L.L BEAN EARTH DAY HIKE 6 P.M. NORTH PARK PIE TRAYNOR FIELD NORTH PARK. Over-8 event. Free (registration required). Llbean.com/pittsburgh.
TUE., APRIL 23 CHAOS AND CARNAGE TOUR 5 P.M. REX THEATER SOUTH SIDE. All-ages event. $33-35. 412-381-1681 or greyareaprod.com. With special guests Revocation, Fallujah, Spite, Uncured, & Buried Above Ground.
TUE., APRIL 23 GEORGE JONES NEW VIEW TRIO 5 P.M. BACKSTAGE BAR AT THEATER SQUARE DOWNTOWN. Free event. 412-456-6666 or trustarts.org.
TUE., APRIL 23 RON CARTER QUARTET 8 P.M. GREER CABARET THEATER DOWNTOWN. $25-35. 412-456-6666 or trustarts.org.
FOR UPCOMING ALLEGHENY COUNTY PARKS EVENTS, LOG ONTO WWW.ALLEGHENYPARKS.COM PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM
Ilana Curtis and Sarah Rafson
.ARCHITECTURE.
ARCHITECTURAL LOVE LETTER BY CHARLES ROSENBLUM // CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
I
N APRIL 2016, Pittsburgh native
Sarah Rafson opened Point Line Projects. Architects connect points to make lines, while authors write lines
to make points. How better to convey the intersection of architecture and associated arts? Those parallel passions run deep in Rafson’s work and are now
EN POINTE VOL. 1 LAUNCH PARTY
5 p.m. Fri., April 5. GBBN Architects, 5411 Penn Ave., Garfield. Free. pointlineprojects.com
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converging with Point Line Projects’ new publication, En Pointe Volume 1: Pittsburgh. The publication is a collection of twelve interviews, produced as a foldable broadsheet. Rafson earned a master’s at Columbia University’s School of Architecture in its program for Critical Curatorial and
Conceptual Practices. Her thesis on the Chicago feminist architecture collective CARYATIDS won a prize for oral history. Meanwhile, in her editorial practice, she worked for authors Kenneth Frampton, Bernard Tschumi, and Victoria Newhouse. She has also collaborated on exhibitions at the Museum of Modern
Art, Centre Pompidou, Center for Architecture, and Parsons School of Design. Point Line Projects (PLP) recently produced editorial content for the Pittsburgh AIA celebrating Women’s History Month. With editorial and marketing manager Ilana Curtis as lead, PLP has served as production manager for an internationally traveling exhibition, Now What: Advocacy, Activism and Alliances in American Architecture since 1968. The agency is helping a number of local authors produce books, while Rafson and Curtis, together and separately, have been publishing articles in national magazines such as Architect and Metropolis. Now, Point Line Projects is celebrating the release of En Pointe Volume 1: Pittsburgh at Assemble during Unblurred on April 5. “En Pointe originated as an in-house project where we were encountering so many fabulous and fascinating people through our daily projects and work that we decided to systematize those conversations,” says Rafson. En Pointe interviewed collaborators and clients from a variety of projects, as well as “people … I just admire through a series of interviews that dive into their creative
process behind some of their most impactful projects,” Rafson explains. While subjects include local architecture favorites such as Gerard Damiani and Debbie Battistone of studio d’ARC and Raymund Ryan from the Heinz Architectural Center, the publication also has independent curators including Kilolo Luckett and Casey Droege.
architecture and design are really considered one of the primary modes of cultural production and thought here.” But she also sees these conversations having relevance further afield. In traveling the country talking about her work, she finds “The secret of Pittsburgh is that people [elsewhere] don’t realize how much rich cultural work
“... I WOULD LOVE TO SEE AN EVEN MORE CONNECTED ARTS ECOSYSTEM WHERE ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN ARE REALLY CONSIDERED ONE OF THE PRIMARY MODES OF CULTURAL PRODUCTION AND THOUGHT HERE.” Rafson sees En Pointe as making connections within Pittsburgh’s architecture and visual arts communities and beyond. “A lot of [local] conversations happen in silos, and I would love to see an even more connected arts ecosystem where
is happening here. In a way that we hope that this first volume will be an enlightening other people about how awesome the discourse is here.” The current publication was always a goal, because PLP has seen itself as
Follow contributing writer Charles Rosenblum on Twitter @CharlzR
an ambassador. “We always knew that at some point we wanted to begin producing original content that was self-initiated,” says Rafson. Then an opportunity to participate in the Los Angeles Book Fair arose unexpectedly. Point Line Projects submitted En Pointe. “We were surprised to get accepted,” Rafson comments. “But now we’re going there on April 11.” The first publication is an unconventional one. “This is definitely not your standard looking publication,” says Curtis. “We wanted to create something that is interesting to read but also dynamic in format — [it] can be used as a poster, or [be] read section by section, or put on a wall. It kind of takes on a nontraditional format which I think really goes along with Point Line Projects ethos and all that we do.” The opening at Assemble perpetuates those values. “It’s going to be a family friendly event. It will be an introduction to new audiences and a way to thank the people we have already been working with.” Whether on Penn Avenue, in Los Angeles, or further afield, En Pointe will be making connections. “It’s our love letter to Pittsburgh.”
•
SPRING THRIFT & DESIGNER SALE APRIL 11-14 at
A NONPROFIT ENTERPRISE OF
25-50% OFF thrift clothing, shoes, and accessories PLUS, the premiere of thousands of spring & summer items from our newly expanded Designer Days Boutique
125 51st Street in Lawrenceville • Free Parking! Bring this ad for $5 off your $25+ purchase!
Valid April 11 - May 31, 2019. One coupon per person, per day. Not valid with other offers. PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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Artwork from Kosmo Vinyl, altered from José Luis Salinas comic strip Cisco Kid
.ART . .
WANTED: A DIFFERENT PRESIDENT BY HANNAH LYNN // HLYNN@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
I
N THE COMIC ART SERIES Cisco Kid vs.
Donald Trump, the iconic Wild West hero tackles the most inadequate and appalling aspects of the current presidency. From April 5-May 3, the Irma Freeman Center for Imagination will host an exhibit of the series by artist Kosmo Vinyl. Vinyl started the series — which he calls an “Instagram installation” — in June 2016, after Trump secured the Republican nomination but before it was clear he could actually win. The Cisco Kid was a Western character created by writer O. Henry in 1907,
but each piece in Vinyl’s series takes a panel from the Cisco Kid comic strip by Argentinian artist José Luis Salinas, which ran through the 1950s and 60s. Vinyl alters the panel, changing the text bubbles from dialogue about gunfights and womanizing to commentary on gun control and immigration. “I’ve enlisted Cisco in the cause,” says Vinyl. “I’d like to think that [Salinas] thinks I’m putting Cisco to good work, that it’s something he would speak up for.” Vinyl describes Cisco as “the Robin Hood of the border” and chose him as a vehicle in part because, given that
CISCO KID VS. DONALD TRUMP
Opens Fri., April 5. Runs through Fri., May 3. 5006 Penn Ave., Bloomfield. irmafreeman.org
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the popular The Cisco Kid TV series ran from 1950-56, there’s a fair chance Trump would have watched it as a kid. The appropriated panels feature Cisco and other characters reacting to issues. Some are vague, universal denouncements, while others dig into more specific policies. In one, Cisco announces “The fascists are coming!!” while riding his horse full-speed ahead. In another, he asks aloud, “Separating children from their families! How low can he go???” It’s a striking image, seeing a character of the Western canon denouncing Trump, though the anachronism is overwhelming if you think about it too hard. Cowboys weren’t known to stand up for human rights. Then again, maybe things have gotten so bad that even
they’d draw the line somewhere. Vinyl originally planned to do the series until the November 2016 election when Trump would presumably lose. After seeing the devastation caused by his win, Vinyl kept going. “[A friend] said to me ‘Come on, man. We need Cisco more than ever now. You can’t stop doing it now, what’s he gonna do — ride off and sulk?’” He plans to continue the series for the foreseeable future, without thinking too hard about what an additional four years of the presidency would mean. He’s aware that there’s an over-saturation of information and commentary about Trump and tries not to repeat his points in the strip. “It is a long haul and you need to pace yourself,” he says.
•
.FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 4.
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY BY ROB BREZSNY // INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): “Human beings are not born once and for all on the day their mothers give birth to them,” wrote novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez. “Life obliges them over and over to give birth to themselves.” Here’s what I’ll add to that: As you mature, you do your best to give birth to ever-new selves that are in alignment with the idealistic visions you have of the person you want to become. Unfortunately, most of us aren’t skilled at that task in adolescence and early adulthood, and so the selves we create may be inadequate or delusory or distorted. Fortunately, as we learn from our mistakes, we eventually learn to give birth to selves that are strong and righteous. The only problem is that the old false selves we generated along the way may persist as ghostly echoes in our psyche. And we have a sacred duty to banish those ghostly echoes. I tell you this, Taurus, because the coming months will be en excellent time to do that banishing. Ramp up your efforts NOW!
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): “When spring came, there were no problems except where to be happiest,” wrote Ernest Hemingway in his memoir. He quickly amended that statement, though, mourning, “The only thing that could spoil a day was people.” Then he ventured even further, testifying, “People were always the limiters of happiness except for the very few that were as good as spring itself.” I bring these thoughts to your attention so as to prepare you for some good news. In the next three weeks, I suspect you will far exceed your quota for encounters with people who are not “limiters of happiness”—who are as good as spring itself.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): It’s time to prove that Cancerians have more to offer than nurturing, empathizing, softening the edges, feeling deeply, getting comfortable, and being creative. Not that there’s anything wrong with those talents. On the contrary! They’re beautiful and necessary. It’s just that for now you need to avoid being pigeonholed as a gentle, sensitive soul. To gather the goodies that are potentially available to you, you’ll have to be more forthright and aggressive than usual. Is it possible for you to wield a commanding presence? Can you add a big dose
that “our duty is to feel what is sublime and cherish what is beautiful.” But that’s a demanding task to pull off on an ongoing basis. Maybe the best we can hope for is to feel what’s sublime and cherish what’s beautiful for 30-35 days every year. Having said that, though, I’m happy to tell you that in 2019 you could get all the way up to 95-100 days of feeling what’s sublime and cherishing what’s beautiful. And as many as 15 to 17 of those days could come during the next 21.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): A mushroom shaped like a horse’s hoof grows on birch trees in parts of Europe and the U.S. If you strip off its outer layer, you get amadou, spongy stuff that’s great for igniting fires. It’s not used much anymore, but it was a crucial resource for some of our ancestors. As for the word “amadou,” it’s derived from an old French term that means “tinder, kindling, spunk.” The same word was formerly used to refer to a person who is quick to light up or to something that stimulates liveliness. In accordance with astrological omens, I’m making “Amadou” your nickname for the next four weeks.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
of willfulness and a pinch of ferocity to your self-presentation? Yes and yes!
heal deeply if you get very clear about what you hunger for and then express it frankly.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
General Motors manufactured a car called the Pontiac Aztek from 2001 to 2005. It wasn’t commercially successful. One critic said it looked like “an angry kitchen appliance,” and many others agreed it was exceptionally unstylish. But later the Aztek had an odd revival because of the popularity of the TV show Breaking Bad. The show’s protagonist, Walter White, owned one, and that motivated some of his fans to emulate his taste in cars. In accordance with astrological omens, Leo, I suspect that something of yours may also enjoy a second life sometime soon. An offering that didn’t get much appreciation the first time around may undergo a resurgence. Help it do so.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): “Of all the female sins, hunger is the least forgivable,” laments feminist author Laurie Penny. She’s referring to the hunger “for anything, for food, sex, power, education, even love.” She continues: “If we have desires, we are expected to conceal them, to control them, to keep ourselves in check. We are supposed to be objects of desire, not desiring beings.” I’ve quoted her because I suspect it’s crucial for you to not suppress or hide your longings in the coming weeks. That’s triply true if you’re a woman, but also important if you’re a man or some other gender. You have a potential to
Only one of Nana Mouskouri’s vocal cords works, but over the course of an almost 60-year career, the Libran singer has sold over 30 million records in twelve different languages. Many critics speculate that her apparent disadvantage is key to her unique style. She’s a coloratura mezzo, a rare category of chanteuse who sings ornate passages with exceptional agility and purity. In the coming weeks, I suspect that you will be like Mouskouri in your ability to capitalize on a seeming lack or deprivation.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Your tribe is symbolized by three animals: the scorpion, the eagle, and the mythological phoenix. Some astrologers say that the scorpion is the ruling creature of “unevolved” or immature Scorpios, whereas the eagle and phoenix are associated with those of your tribe who express the riper, more enlightened qualities of your sign. But I want to put in a plug for the scorpion as being worthy of all Scorpios. It is a hardy critter that rivals the cockroach in its ability to survive—and even thrive in—less than ideal conditions. For the next two weeks, I propose we make it your spirit creature.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Sagittarian novelist Gustave Flaubert declared
Sommeliers are people trained to perceive the nuances of wine. By sampling a few sips, the best sommeliers can discern facts about the type of grapes that were used to make the wine and where on earth they were grown. I think that in the coming weeks you Capricorns should launch an effort to reach a comparable level of sensitivity and perceptivity about any subject you care about. It’s a favorable time to become even more masterful about your specialties; to dive deeper into the areas of knowledge that captivate your imagination.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Every language is a work-in-progress. New words constantly insinuate themselves into common usage, while others fade away. If you traveled back in time to 1719 while remaining in your current location, you’d have trouble communicating with people of that era. And today linguistic evolution is even more rapid than in previous ages. The Oxford English Dictionary adds more than a thousand new words annually. In recognition of the extra verbal skill and inventiveness you now posses, Aquarius, I invite you to coin a slew of your own fresh terms. To get you warmed up, try this utterance I coined: vorizzimo! It’s an exclamation that means “thrillingly beautiful and true.”
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): One of history’s most audacious con men was George C. Parker, a Pisces. He made his living selling property that did not legally belong to him, like the Brooklyn Bridge, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Statue of Liberty. I suspect you could summon his level of salesmanship and persuasive skills in the coming weeks. But I hope you will use your nearly magical powers to make deals and perform feats that have maximum integrity. It’s OK to be a teensy bit greedy, though.
GO TO REALASTROLOGY.COM TO CHECK OUT ROB BREZSNY’S EXPANDED WEEKLY AUDIO HOROSCOPES AND DAILY TEXT-MESSAGE HOROSCOPES. THE AUDIO HOROSCOPES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE BY PHONE AT 1-877-873-4888 OR 1-900-950-7700
PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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SEVEN DAYS OF ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
PHOTO: BIKE PGH
^ Sat., April 6: Women & Non-Binary Forum
THURSDAY APRIL 4 FEST
All art is welcome at the Pittsburgh Fringe Festival, a performance-based festival of offbeat and adventurous creations. The fest, returning to Pittsburgh for a sixth time, is bigger and better than ever. Spanning four days this year, Fringe Fest is taking over nine Penn Ave. venues and hosting more than 40 shows with 100 performers. Continues through Sun., April 7. Various locations. pittsburghfringe.org
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TALK
Social media has played a part in the rise of hate crimes around the globe. The shooter in last month’s attack in New Zealand parroted far-right conspiracy theories that have been spread on social media. The Tree of Life shooter shared white nationalist posts on Gab, a social media platform favored by Neo Nazis. The problem is serious. And for people like Harvard professor Susan Benesch, it’s not to be taken lightly. She speaks in Pittsburgh at a discussion called Beyond Hate: Dangerous Speech in the Era of Social Media. The talk will be held at
the Omni William Penn where Benesch will inform participants about dangerous speech, especially online, and the most effective, safe ways to diminish it. Discounted tickets available to Allegheny County Bar Association members and current law students. 11:30 a.m. 530 William Penn Place, Downtown. $60. Acbf.org
ART
Hit Sweetwater Center for the Arts for the launch of Studio419, a new initiative to connect community members and local students to art, from a centrally located studio space in Sewickley. To celebrate, all are invited to the Spill the
Tea grand opening party, where guests of all-ages can enjoy refreshments and hors d’oeuvres, learn about Studio419’s vision, and participate in interactive art activities. Artwork produced during the evening will then be displayed in the Sewickley community as public art pieces. 7 p.m. 419 Beaver St., Sewickley. Free. sweetwater1975.wpengine.com
STAGE
A Little Night Music, a Stephen Sondheim musical from 1973, is a steamy story about a group of horny, unhappy couples in Sweden at the turn of the 20th century. Inspired by Ingmar Bergman’s film
LET S GET ’
S CIAL )ROORZ XV WR ƓQG RXW ZKDWōV KDSSHQLQJ @PGHCITYPAPER Ř FACEBOOK.COM/PITTSBURGHCITYPAPER
LANDMARKS PRESERVATION RESOURCE CENTER
^ Sat., April 6: STIV — No Compromise, No Regrets
Smiles of a Summer Night, it’s not exactly Sondheim’s best known work, but for fans of salacious musicals involving swingers and Sweden, it’s not to be missed. The Duquesne University theater group Red Masquers closes out its 2019 season with A Little Night Music, directed by John E. Lane Jr., who, fun fact, played the mayor in the locally made Bigfoot The Movie. 8 p.m. Duquesne University Genesius Theater, 1225 Seitz St., Downtown. $16.50. duq.edu/events/ a-little-night-music
FRIDAY APRIL 5 KIDS
Invasions don’t usually come with art, music, and a youthful atmosphere — but that’s the whole point of this one. The Andy Warhol Museum is hosting its annual Youth Invasion 2019: Picture Show, where teen performers and artists take over the museum for one night to play live music and present their own artwork inspired by Warhol’s portraits. Following the launch, the teen art exhibition will remain on display through April 20. The event is free with admission. 5 p.m. 117 Sandusky St., North Side. Tickets in advance are $20 for adults, $10 for children, seniors, and students. warhol.org ^ Sun., April 7: David Sedaris PHOTO: INGRID CHRISTIE
SATURDAY APRIL 6 MEETING
Bike PGH continues its mission of making the city’s streets safer and more inclusive with its annual Women & Non-Binary Forum at the Ace Hotel. The event features a number of workshops and talks on bike safety, gear, and more, all focused on trans and cis women, as well as those whose identity falls outside of the dominant conceptions of gender. The day includes a yoga session, lunch provided by Whitfield, and a celebratory bike ride. There’s also an add-on City Cycling class on Sun., April 7 to help participants better navigate Pittsburgh by bike. 8 a.m. 120 S. Whitfield St., East Liberty. $15-70. Registration required. Bikepgh.org
- A program of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Foundation
JOIN US AT THE LANDMARKS PRESERVATION RESOURCE CENTER FOR ONGOING WORKSHOPS AS WE CONTINUE PROGRAMMING ON ARCHITECTURE, HISTORY, DESIGN, URBAN PLANNING, AND OTHER TOPICS RELATED TO HOW CITIES FUNCTION AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION AS A TOOL OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
TUESDAY, APRIL 9 • 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM LECTURE: A STORY OF PITTSBURGH’S STREETS & ALLEYWAYS PRESENTER: JOHN SCHALCOSKY THE ODD, MYSTERIOUS & FASCINATING HISTORY OF PITTSBURGH The story of how Pittsburgh’s streets and alleyways is steeped is filled with fascinating anecdotes, from rebellion to murder, and mystery. In this lecture, John Schalcosky takes a deep dive into the history of Pittsburgh’s streets, looking at how they came to be, how they were named, and how they evolved over time. ABOUT THE PRESENTER: John Schalcosky is the founder of the “Odd, Mysterious & Fascinatin History of Pittsburgh”, a very popular Facebook Page that explores the most unusual, mysterious and forgotten tales of Western Pennsylvania. He is a frequent speaker at high schools, universities and at public events, and is often featured in stories and interviews on Pittsburgh history.
MARKETPLACE
Form meets function when the Pittsburgh Vintage Mixer Home Show returns to Teamsters Local Union 249. Fans of old treasures, unique decor, and kooky finds can connect with over 30 local and regional vendors selling a wide range of antiques, home goods, furniture, and more. Find that perfect mid-century sofa or lamp, or comb through some vintage fashion and vinyl. CONTINUES ON PG. 42
THIS LECTURE IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. RSVPS ARE APPRECIATED: MARYLU@PHLF.ORGOR 412-471-5808 EXT. 527. 744 REBECCA AVENUE
WILKINSBURG, PA 15221
412-471-5808
PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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CALENDAR, CONTINUED FROM PG. 41
PHOTO: ERIN FULTON
^ Thu., April 4: A Little Night Music
Hungry shoppers will also find hot slices from Badamo’s Pizza, coffee from Espresso a Mano, and boozy beverages from Allegheny Wine Mixer. 10 a.m. 4701 Butler St., Lawrenceville. $5/free for kids 12 and under. pghvintagemixer.com
FILM
In The Cameraman, Buster Keaton plays a photographer named Buster who becomes a cameraman as a way to impress a crush. In typical Keaton fashion, a lot of things go wrong. There’s a gunfight and a ticker-tape parade and a monkey, providing many opportunities for Keaton to showcase his remarkable gift for silent-film acting and physical comedy. Treat yourself to a screening of this classic at Keystone Oaks High School, featuring live organ accompaniment by Tony Thomas. 7:30 p.m. 1000 Kelton Ave., Dormont. $20. pittsburghtheatreorgan.com
FILM
Though maybe less well known than other frontmen like Johnny Rotten or Joe Strummer, The Dead Boys’ Stiv Bators was a trailblazing, massively influential punk icon. Or, to borrow the words of
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the Dead Boys’ debut: he was young, loud, and snotty. The Cleveland-bred group had a short but unforgettable run in the late 1970s that came to personify the energetic and frequently lewd on-stage antics of punk shows at the time (cutting himself, pretending to hang himself on stage, etc.). Bators passed away in 1990 — he was hit by a car in Paris, didn’t go to a doctor, went home, and died from a blood clot the next day — but his influence remains huge to this day. Learn more about Bators’ remarkable life with the Pittsburgh premiere of the documentary STIV — No Compromise, No Regrets. Musician/Bators collaborator Frank Secish and journalist Theresa Kereakes will be on hand at the Regent Square Theater screening. 8 p.m. 1035 S. Braddock St., Regent Square. $10. Cinema.pfpca.org
SUNDAY APRIL 7
OUTDOORS
Pittsburgh’s most hardcore trail run with the most risqué name is back for another
year. The 3 Rivers Outdoor Company is offering runners the usual range of loops in Frick Park, including two, four, six, and eight mile runs — while the most intense or insane can choose to run the whole 20-mile “Mother Fricker.” Start times run throughout the morning and early afternoon, depending on which loop you choose. All loops start and end at the big parking lot at the bottom of the park. Registration is not required and the run is not timed. Organizers just ask that runners bring at least one non-perishable food donation and one old running shoe in any condition — you’ll find out why there. The after party will be hosted at 3ROC with free beer for all race participants, as well as giveaways. 8 a.m. 1981 Beechwood Blvd., Point Breeze. Free and open to the public. 3riversoutdoor.com
CONCERT
In the opening episode of celebrity-singing competition show The Masked Singer, the first eliminated contestant was (former) Steelers player Antonio Brown. The third contestant eliminated was revealed to be former Steelers player Terry Bradshaw. The winner of The Masked Singer was T-Pain, who has never played professional sports
but will headline Bigelow Bash, hosted by the University of Pittsburgh on Bigelow Boulevard. There will be plenty of food trucks; opening for the unmasked singer is the yet-to-be-announced winner of Pitt’s Battle of the Bands. 1 p.m. Bigelow Blvd., Oakland. Ppc.pitt.edu
TALK
David Sedaris has never been known to hold back in his books — he’s written frankly about his speed addiction, humiliating phases involving Elizabethan English and terrible conceptual art, and, of course, every messy detail of his family life growing up with five siblings. But somehow, in his latest collection Calypso, Sedaris manages to mine even deeper and discover new levels of acerbic, cathartic self-reflection. Those familiar with his work will be happy to revisit his obsessive litter-cleanup and his penchant for making friends with neighborhood animals (a fox named Carol, for instance). But Calypso is at its best when Sedaris stays focused on his family, particularly some painful passages about his late sister Tiffany and his nonagenarian father. If you’ve never heard him read in person,
PHOTO: PATOS ARCHIVES
^ Sat., April 6: The Cameraman
don’t miss this opportunity to catch Sedaris at Carnegie Music Hall of Oakland. 7 p.m. Carnegie Music Hall of Oakland, 4400 Forbes Ave., Oakland. $35-55. druskyentertainment.com
MONDAY APRIL 8 FOOD
How difficult is it for women to open restaurants in Pittsburgh? Does gender influence success? Join City of Asylum for a lively all-female panel of local food industry professionals discussing the topic. The chat, moderated by Beth Kracklauer (Wall Street Journal) and Melissa McCart (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), features Becca Hegarty (Bitter Ends Luncheonette), Courtney Crawford (Nine on Nine), Keyla Cook (Casa Brasil), and Kate Romane (Black Radish Kitchen and E2). 5:30 p.m. City of Asylum. 40 W. North Ave., North Side. $10. alphabetcity.org
TUESDAY APRIL 9 STAGE
In response to the September 11 attacks in 2001, Canada diverted dozens of flights headed to the United States and landed them at their own military and civilian airports. Canadian cities and towns hosted thousands of passengers stranded in Canada until U.S. airspace was reopened. PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh
presents Come From Away, which tells the true story of a small town in Newfoundland that welcomed 7,000 passengers in the days following the attack, examining the initial culture clashes, nerves, and the trust and gratitude that followed. The musical, which will run for one week at the Benedum Center, has been received by audiences and critics as a triumph of humanity over hate. Performance times vary throughout the week. 237 Seventh Street, Downtown. Ticket prices range from $79 to $165. trustarts.org
WEDNESDAY APRIL 10 LECTURE
Gain more insight into the Frick Pittsburgh exhibition Street Photography to Surrealism: The Golden Age of Photography in France, 1900-1945 with a special lecture by Dr. Mary McAuliffe. The historian and author has taught at several universities, lectured at the Smithsonian Institution, and written extensively about Paris. Her 2018 book, Paris on the Brink, provides a detailed history of the art, fashion, literature, and politics of 1930s Paris by focusing on influential figures such as Jean Renoir, Salvador Dalí, Simone de Beauvoir, André Gide, Sylvia Beach, and Léon Blum. McAuliffe will use her extensive knowledge to bring historical perspective and context to the exhibition. 7-8 p.m. 7227 Reynolds St., Point Breeze. $10-13. thefrickpittsburgh.org • PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER
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Senior Software Engineer Interpace Diagnostics (IDXG) is a fast-growing, commercial diagnostics laboratory specializing in unique molecular testing for cancer diagnosis. This position is based at our laboratory in Pittsburgh, PA. It supports the Laboratory Information System (LIS) by working on a Team of engineers designing, developing, documenting and deploying software in a highly regulated environment. It also is responsible for training users and training laboratory professionals in the use of the LIS. This includes training and documenting the training and acceptance by end users; maintaining compliance within a Quality System; and working independently on proof-of-concept projects.It requires a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science and 5 years of professional software development experience as well as experience with JBoss 4.2.x, Struts 2 and Ext/JS 2.3.x, Hibernate 3.x, Envers, MySQL (DDL, DML, Stored Procedures and Functions), WordPress Administration, JAX-WS and JAXRS, and Windows 10 Administration. Resume to: IT Recruiter at Interpace Diagnostics, 2515 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 or ITRecruiting@interpacedx.com.
Clinical Laboratory Lead Research Associate This position is based at our Interpace Diagnostics laboratory in Pittsburgh, PA. The Lead Research Associate is responsible for the development and/or improvement of various laboratory methods for the molecular and biological analysis of human cancers in fulfillment of company objectives and various laboratory licensing and accrediting requirements and guidelines, e.g., CAP, CLIA and New York State DOH. This includes managing, coordinating, planning and documenting laboratory projects including experimental procedures for improvement of current laboratory diagnostic tests and methodologies; developmental efforts for new products; other projects as assigned; validation of new or existing laboratory tests including data analysis and preparation of validation records; provides updates on projects to management; aides in training of other lab personnel; assists with routine clinical laboratory testing. The individual will work in a team based environment working closely with Laboratory Manager, Laboratory QC Supervisor, Lead Laboratory Technologist, and Laboratory staff. Duties include: Responsible for planning, executing, monitoring, and controlling approved laboratory projects within set timelines. Routinely prepares reports for management regarding status of project(s). Works with laboratory management to improve/enhance current laboratory tests/methods, develop new tests/methods, and associated validations in line with regulatory compliance. • Develops new bioinformatics and statistical algorithms to analyze, visualize and interpret results from high-dimensional experimental data to support new product development initiatives. • May evaluate new equipment and new technology for development or clinical efforts. • Documents all non-clinical work (I.e. developmental work) providing the purpose, methods, results and conclusions of laboratory studies in written form and provides supporting data and documentation. • Improves processes, coordination and documentation of lab projects, including development of SOPs, as assigned. • Aids in determining timelines and costs for laboratory projects. • Routinely reads relevant literature, draws conclusions, and makes recommendations. • Works with Laboratory management and IT department to ensure new laboratory tests and procedures can be accommodated in LIMS in a timely manner. Trains staff members on newly developed procedures. • It requires a MS in Cellular and Molecular Biology and three years experience in a Commercial Clinical Laboratory doing clinical chemistry, molecular biology (RNA and DNA analysis) and next generation sequencing. Resume to: Head of Lab, Interpace Diagnostics, 2515 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 or LabRecruiting@interpacedx.com. No Calls or agencies, please.
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HELP WANTED COMPUTER VISION ENGINEER CapSen Robotics, Inc. D/B/A CapSen Robotics is seeking a Computer Vision Engineer in Pittsburgh, PA to be responsible for designing, developing, and testing 3D computer vision systems for object detection, tracking, scanning, and measuring in CapSen’s robotics and sensory products. Send resume to: recruiting@ capsenrobotics.com
TECHNOLOGY EntIT Software LLC is accepting resumes for the position of Systems/Software Engineer in Pittsburgh, PA (Ref. # ENTPPNILX1). Design, develop, troubleshoot and debug software programs for software enhancements and new products. Develop software including operating systems, compliers, routers, networks, utilities, databases and Internet-related tools. Mail resume to EntIT Software LLC, Attn: Jim Brooking, 5325 Elkhorn Boulevard, Suite 343, Sacramento, CA 95842. Resume must include Ref. #, full name, email address & mailing address. No phone calls. Must be legally authorized to work in U.S. without sponsorship. EOE.
OFFICIAL ADVERTISEMENT
THE BOARD OF PUBLIC EDUCATION OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PITTSBURGH Sealed proposals shall be deposited at the Administration Building, Room 251, 341 South Bellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15213, on April 9, 2019, until 2:00 P.M., local prevailing time for:
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IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-18-13494, In re petition of Rachel Maeroff Michaelson for change of name to Rachel Judith Maeroff. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court authorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 22nd day of April, 2019, at 9:45 a.m., as the time and the Motions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all persons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for
IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-19-002408, In re petition of Naveen Cannan Kali & Narkees Begum Navaneetha Cannan parent and legal guardian of Mohit Khan Navaneetha Cannan, for change of name to Mohit Khan Naveen. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court authorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 10th day of April, 2019, at 9:45 a.m., as the time and the Motions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all persons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for
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Project Manual and Drawings will be available for purchase on March 28, 2019 at Modern Reproductions (412-488-7700), 127 McKean Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15219 between 9:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. The cost of the Project Manual Documents is nonrefundable. Project details and dates are described in each project manual. We are an equal rights and opportunity school district.
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GOOF PROOF
BY BRENDAN EMMETT QUIGLEY // WWW.BRENDANEMMETTQUIGLEY.COM
ACROSS
1. Google’s alternative to Excel 7. Makeup of some tennis courts 14. Six-sided screw holder 15. Sing to 16. Secret things 17. Became stressed 18. Approving words to put a slant on a word? 20. Programmable thermostats with hidden microphones 21. Word in many a soccer club chant 22. Morse code sound 24. Dir. at roughly 4:00 25. ___ diavolo 26. Convention center rental 28. Costs for removing font styles? 33. Simply the best 34. Tortoise’s rival 35. “You don’t need my input to overrule changes in the manuscript”? 40. Open horse carriages 41. Koln cooler 42. Sports org. with a tri-colored ball 45. Bring home 46. Flash before
one’s eye? 47. Momoa who played Aquaman 49. “Hey bro, tell me which one of these I’m gonna strike from the galley”? 54. One way to fight 55. Single breath mint 56. 2009 animated movie based on a 2002 Neil Gaiman novel 57. Top 58. Took every penny from 59. Moogs and Korgs, e.g.
DOWN
1. Philadelphia Flyers star Gostisbehere 2. David Bowie album in the Berlin trilogy 3. One forgiving 4. Put on the books 5. Bigeye and skipjack, e.g. 6. Be an overzealous fan 7. Pilgrim in Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” 8. “I also saw an egret, an emu, and an ___ who was building an aerie.” (Roz Chast on crosswords) 9. Arnaz of early TV
10. Popular tech website 11. 1919 Albert Payson Terhune book 12. Overpraise 13. “You betcha” 15. WWII camp 19. Stinger 23. CDC overseer 25. All done 26. San Francisco transportation system 27. City near Provo 29. Like some energy bars 30. Levels the playing field? 31. Fight or flight, e.g. 32. Fraulein’s flat 35. Phish
fan’s collectible? 36. It’s pulled over the eyes of the gullible 37. Roadside diner’s come-on 38. “Too funny” 39. Retire with grace 43. ___ looks 44. Battery bumps 46. Without sympathy 47. Aspic part 48. Celebrity chef Brown 50. Somewhat 51. Spoke out loud 52. Mix things up 53. Slight touches 54. Getting shit done, initially LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS
PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER APRIL 3-10, 2019
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PEEPSHOW A sex and social justice column BY JESSIE SAGE // PEEPSHOWCAST@GMAIL.COM
I
HAVE a breast augmentation
surgery scheduled for next month. If previous behavior is any indication of the future, I will likely bump the procedure to November or December. I put the deposit down nearly two years ago and keep shifting the date. The reason for my indecisiveness is complicated. I am 41 now, and I have wanted a boob job for close to 20 years. I didn’t get one when I was younger, in part because I was busy having kids, and in part because I was still trying to reconcile my feminist ideals with what I was trained to understand as oppressive beauty standards. I have spent a lot of time interrogating myself: Why do I want a boob job? Do I think it will make me sexier? Sexier to whom? And I am not alone. Even a cursory Google search on “feminism and boob jobs” brings up dozens of articles on whether or not you can be a feminist with a boob job. I am almost embarrassed to voice this concern. The more rational part of me wants to scream “Of course feminists can have implants!” Feminists, in fact, should be able to do whatever they want with their bodies; they should feel free to reject social pressure to conform their body to narrow conceptions of beauty, but they should also feel free to embrace the things which appeal to them, and not be apologetic for either of those choices.
CP ILLUSTRATION: XIOLA JENSEN
OUR FEMINISM IS STUNTED WHEN IT MOVES FROM ASSERTING WHAT WE SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DO, TO LIMITING WHAT WE FEEL LIKE WE CAN LEGITIMATELY DO. Yet, such decisions are never that simple for women. Even feminists have a hard time imagining that women make decisions about their appearance or their bodies outside of the male gaze. Aesthetic choices like boob jobs are thought to be a direct reflection of our willingness to alter our bodies to fit male desire.
Ironically, this view represents its own kind of misogyny. First, it assumes that women don’t have their own preferences or desires. But second, and perhaps more importantly, it devalues high femininity. This is true not only of breasts but of all aesthetic choices coded as feminine. I can remember being a grad student
at feminist philosophy conferences, for example, where I was made to feel ashamed for wearing eyeliner and red lipstick, both of which are pretty on brand for me and have been since I was young. Pushing back against the expectations of the male gaze is an important political project; women shouldn’t have to comport their bodies for the pleasure of others. However, if femmes are thrown under the bus and made to feel ashamed for their aesthetic choices in the process of meeting these ends, this isn’t feminism, it’s internalized misogyny. Our feminism is stunted when it moves from asserting what we should not have to do, to limiting what we feel like we can legitimately do. While I do not think that there is anything objectively better about the sort of high femme aesthetic that appeals to me (one that big boobs would be a nice complement to), I do think that it is a valid choice that should be recognized as such. In fact, I no longer feel conflicted about my desire, and I will certainly not be apologetic when I do it (which I will). The only conflict that I have now is giving myself permission to spend this kind of money on myself. Valuing my own desires enough to pay for them is perhaps the next feminist project that I need to spend time wrestling with.
•
JESSIE SAGE IS CO-HOST OF THE PEEPSHOW PODCAST AT PEEPSHOWPODCAST.COM. HER COLUMN PEEPSHOW IS EXCLUSIVE TO PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER. FOLLOW HER ON TWITTER @PEEP_CAST. HAVE A SEX QUESTION YOU’RE TOO AFRAID TO ASK YOUR FRIENDS? ASK JESSIE! EMAIL INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM. QUESTIONS MAY BE CONSIDERED FOR AN UPCOMING COLUMN.
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127 Anderson Street - Suite 101 Timber Court Building, PIttsburgh, PA 15212 Phone: (412) 322-4151
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