Arts & Ideas turns 18 PAGE 24
$3.95 |
JUNE/JULY
| 2013
Fun Sun IN THE
Your 2013 SUMMER Bucket LIST.
Is Christianity dead? PAGE 22
www.newhavenmagazine.com
PAGE 42
Christopher Monk photographed by Steve Blazo
Making the Most of Your Season in the Sun PAGE 12
CS t I S are A B Cab o t er
CKumm BAfor S
Seacrest
Retirement Center
Retirement living with a grand view. 588 Ocean Ave., West Haven, CT. Located right on Long Island Sound! Take Exit 41 off I-95 or visit us online at www.seacrestweb.com Call for complimentary luncheon and tour:
203-931-2510 SEACREST
Retirement Center West Haven
Uncompromised Assisted Living and Memory Care
Enjoy the Good Life with Miele. Miele’s Futura dishwasher series, featuring a patented FlexiCare Basket System and intelligent sensor technology, means you can enjoy entertaining and dining relaxed in the NQRZOHGJH WKDW HYHQ \RXU ÛQHVW FU\VWDO VWHPZDUH DQG IDYRULWH casseroles will be perfectly cleaned with unmatched care. Miele Futura — you know brilliance when you see it.
Page Hardware & Appliance Co. 9 Boston Street, Guilford, CT 06437 ✆203.453.5267 pagehardware.com
Get ready for the season & New England Cape
Handmade in
see what’s new!
Elite Cape
USA
Come see what we’re building for you. 216 West Road Ellington, CT Corner of Rte 83 & 286
Ask about
FREE DELIVERY!
www.KloterFarms.com 860-871-1048
800-BUY-FINE
M & W 9-5, Tu & Th 9-7, Fr 9-5, Sat 8-5
Manchester Dining
new haven
3
INTEL Pup 49 Gets a Name MYSTIC — The Mystic Aquarium’s rescued harbor seal, formerly known as Pup 49, has a new name: Coral. The aquarium received more than 8,000 votes in a public naming contest for the pup, which had her rear left flipper amputated after an infection. Employees gave voters the choice of five names, the others being Grace, Hope, Madison and Mystic. Nine-month-old Coral was rescued in Plymouth, Mass. and arrived at Mystic in July 2012. She currently has a special ramp to help her in and out of the water.
York City’s legendary Radio City Music Hall. Rapper Talib Kweli cited the club as the site of his first concert (Ice Cube). The top spot on the list went to Washington, D.C.’s 9:30 Club.
Girl, Not Interrupted NEW HAVEN — If there’s such a thing as an optimal stage of life for sex-reassignment surgery, it must be during a person’s most confusing age. The Yale Health plan has now extended coverage of genderreassignment surgery to students, after it was granted to faculty and staff in 2011. This puts Yale up there with Harvard, Brown and the University of Pennsylvania, which all cover expenses for “medically necessary” procedures.
Watch Your Mouth
The Toad’s Still Legendary NEW HAVEN — Eat your heart out, Radio City! An online poll by Rolling Stone magazine ranking the best “Big Room” music venues in the country recently ranked the Elm City’s own Toad’s Place No. 14 of 20. Trailing behind the Toad at No. 15 was none other than New
In their early post-punk days, U2 played at Toad’s Place three times in 1980 and 1981 (bassist Adam Clayton is seen wearing a Toad’s T-shirt in an early band poster), but few were as unique as the group’s first visit. When drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. missed a cue to start a song, singer Bono retaliated by throwing the drums into the crowd, which led to a fight between the singer and guitarist the Edge, who intervened. The show ended early, and was likely the group’s most punk-rock moment. Ever.
Well at least we’re not number one.
Rolling Stones — August 12, 1989
New data from mobile advertising firm the Marchex Institute measures which states are the most foul-mouthed. Connecticut ranked No. 16, though the surprising top spot went to Ohio.
Kicking off their comeback “Steel Wheels” tour, the Rolling Stones played a surprise hour-long warm up show for just 700 people before hitting the stadium circuit. The band had been rehearsing for its tour at a closed down school in Washington, Conn., and played the gig as a “thank you” for the hospitality. Also around this time, Mick Jagger’s daughter Karis was attending Yale.
The top five was rounded out by Maryland, New Jersey, Louisiana and Illinois. Marchex compiled the data by examining more than 600,000 phone calls over the past year between consumers and businesses, and scanned for curse words. Washington state, Massachusetts, Arizona, Texas and Virginia were least likely to curse. The data also measured politeness — occurrence of “please” and “thank you” — the top five being South Carolina, North Carolina, Maryland, Louisiana and Georgia.
Bob Dylan — January 12, 1990 Bob Dylan concerts already had a tendency to be lengthy affairs, but the opening night of his 1990 tour at Toad’s Place — his first club show in a quarter-century was legendary as one of his longest ever, consisting of four sets of music and lasting five hours, during which he even took requests from the audience. Is Christianity dead? PAGE 22
Arts & Ideas turns 18 PAGE 24
| Vol. 6, No. 7 | June / July 2013
Editor Michael C. Bingham Design Consultant Terry Wells Contributing Writers Brooks Appelbaum, Nancy Burton, Duo Dickinson, Jessica Giannone, Eliza Hallabeck, Lynn Fredricksen, Mimi Freiman, Liese Klein, John Mordecai, Melissa Nicefaro, Priscilla Searles, Makayla Silva, Cindy Simoneau, Tom Violante Photographers Steve Blazo, Anthony DeCarlo, Lesley Roy Chris Volpe, Lisa Wilder
Advertising Manager Mary W. Beard Senior Publisher’s Representative Roberta Harris Publisher’s Representative Daniel Bennick Robin Ungaro New Haven is published 8 times annually by Second Wind Media Ltd., which also publishes Business New Haven, with offices at 20 Grand Avenue, New Haven, CT 06513. 203-781-3480 (voice), 203-781-3482 (fax). Subscriptions $24.95/year, $39.95/two years. Send name, address & zip code with payment. Second Wind Media Ltd. d/b/a New Haven shall
not be held liable for failure to publish an advertisement or for typographical errors or errors in publication. For more information e-mail: NewHaven@Conntact.com. Please send CALENDAR information to CALENDAR@conntact.com no later than six weeks preceding calendar month of event. Please include date, time, location, event description, cost and contact information. Photographs must be at least 300 dpi resolution and are published at discretion of NEW HAVEN magazine.
| 2013
Fun Sun
$3.95 |
JUNE/JULY
IN THE
Your 2013 SUMMER Bucket LIST.
www.newhavenmagazin e.com
PAGE 42
Christopher Monk photographed by Steve Blazo
Making the Most of Your Season in the Sun PAGE 12
BA
Publisher: Mitchell Young
4 June/July 2013
U2 — December 14, 1980
fo C rS K um to m B er A Ca SI ba C re S t
New Haven
3
A list of the best “big room” music venues in the country on RollingStone.com placed New Haven’s own Toad’s Place at No. 14, in such company as esteemed venues like New York’s Radio City Music Hall and the House of Blues in Chicago. So here’s a look at some of the more legendary concerts that have taken place there over the years.
Cover design: Mixie von Bormann Kayaker, cover model: Christopher Monk Cover Photo: Steve Blazo NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Don’t Cry Wolf NEW HAVEN — There are numbers you can call if you’re lonely and need a date. But 911 is not one of them. A 26-year-old woman was arrested after calling the emergency line to falsely report an armed man at a gas station that diverted police already on their way to an armed robbery report elsewhere. The woman had made numerous 911 calls already in 2013, including hangups to the state police, and numerous other phony calls made simply because the woman said she was lonely and wanted an escort home. Police say they have completed eight investigations with written reports for her claims this year.
Maybe the Toilet Was Backed Up? NEWTOWN — Police are deciding whether to criminally charge a Newtown man with storing 300 gallons of human urine in an abandoned Berkshire Road home he owns. The urine was stored in 300 one-gallon jugs on the dilapidated property, and officials are trying to determine why they were there. The home was condemned and waste workers had to transport the bodily fluids to a
Elegant for Summer
wastewater treatment plant. If determined to be responsible the out-of-state owner of the property would be billed for the cleanup costs.
Emmy Goes To…QU?
Let Ferrucci keep you looking your best with crisp Italian cotton shirts, a unique selection of summer suits, dinner jackets, and accessories...
HAMDEN — A documentary by a team of Quinnipiac University filmmakers could be going home with the gold. Aeromedical, which documents the struggles of medical evacuation missions in the skies over Europe, was nominated for an Emmy award by the Boston/ New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Abbott Sciences. QU communications professor Rebecca Abbott co-produced and codirected the 28-minute documentary with former television journalist Tim Malloy, now assistant director at the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. QU alum and cameraman Bradley O’Connor was associate producer for the film. Aeromedical was filmed Malloy between June and December 2011 in Afghanistan, Germany and in Virginia, and was released in April 2012. The award winners will be announced June 1 in Boston.
Free Parking Across the Street
Cloth by Gladson Ltd. and ©2013 HMS International
Free Parking F P ki Hours: | Mon–Fri: – : pm | Sat: – pm Across Free Parking Elm St. (Corner of Orange) | New Haven | .. the Street Across the Street
Inspiring Lives Through Beautiful Smiles! By combining the art of cosmetic dentistry with advanced dental technology, Accredited cosmetic
NEWBIE WANTS TO KNOW….
dentist Dr. N. Summer Lerch and her team have the right skills to transform any smile.
Come discover how changing your smile will change your life.
Are there bodies buried under the New Haven Green? Yes. The Green was used as the main burial ground in New Haven until 1821, when the tombstones were moved to the Grove Street Cemetery, but many bodies were left behind. It is estimated that the remains of a few thousand bodies may still be interred under the Green. This was called to attention last fall, when a tree uprooted by Hurricane Sandy revealed a human skeleton tangled in its roots. Have a question you’d like answered? E-mail jmordecai@conntact.com.
www.ferrucciltd.com
2 Church St. South, Suite 311 New Haven, CT
Call 203.624.5256
theartofsmiles.com new haven
5
Senator Richard Blumenthal • Mitchell Young for NHm
Photographs By Anthony DeCarlo
R 1014 Chapel St | New Haven | 203-782-2280 Mon. to Sat. 10 am - 6 pm Sun. 12 pm - 5 pm
idiomboutique.com
SUNGLASS SALE
ichard Blumenthal, 67, was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2011. He is now Connecticut’s senior senator following the retirement of Joseph I. Lieberman, Blumenthal previously was the state’s Attorney General for 21 years. He gained popularity in Connecticut challenging major corporations on consumer issues and by being a ubiquitous presence at local events across the state. The Greenwich resident attended Harvard College and Yale School of Law, where he was a classmate of President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Blumenthal visited the office of New Haven magazine shortly after Memorial Day weekend and was interviewed by Publisher Mitchell Young for ONE2ONE.
There is a quote attributed to George Bernard Shaw: ‘All progress depends on the unreasonable man.’ Would you say you are unreasonable?
FRITZ & HAWLEY VISION CENTER FZF FYBNT t DPOUBDU MFOTFT t EJTUJODUJWF FZFXFBS
248-8224 2313 WHITNEY AVE, HAMDEN
On consumer issues I am thought to be unreasonable. I happen to think of myself as very reasonable. I’m unreasonable when it comes to civil rights and liberties. I believe strongly in the right of free speech and other essential liberties. I am unreasonable when it comes to Social Security. I’m sometimes asked, ‘What’s the biggest case you did as an attorney general?’ I’ve argued some big cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, taken on some big challenges, like the lawsuit against the tobacco companies. But the biggest case I’ve ever done is not just one case, it’s the thousands of cases for individual people who needed a medicine and we were able to persuade a company to provide it, or health-care coverage
that the insurance company denied and we were able to reverse that decision, or veterans benefits, Social Security.
That fits the job description of a state attorney general. How does it work as a U.S. Senator? Just as much if not more so. It has a name: constituent service. It’s what congressmen and senators are supposed to do. I came into office and said to my staff, ‘We’re going to propose some bills that may become laws. We’re going to have speeches on the floor of the U.S. Senate. When all is said and done, what people will remember about the work we do is how it affected them individually. I said to my staff, ‘The reason I’m here as a U.S. senator is because I did that work for 20 years [as attorney general].’ I may not have been the smartest attorney general in the world, but nobody doubted that I would fight for them.
Do your colleagues in the Senate place this same emphasis on individual service or is it the big issues that dominate their attention? All of us do it, but for me it’s a calling so I give it a special priority. When I say it is the reason I’m a U.S. Senator, it’s part of my persona. My over-arching principle is what’s in the interest of the United States. We can’t be the world’s policeman, we shouldn’t be the world’s moral judge and jury. We’ll protect our nation, and we’re completing almost 12 years of two wars and we need to bring our troops home so we can do more nation-building here instead of abroad. I’ve made three trips to Afghanistan: two of them with [U.S. Sen.] John McCain [R-Az.]
MR.BLUMENTHAL BLUMENTHAL WASHINGTON GOES TO
Connecticut’s longtime AG says he’s still focused on constituent services
‘When I supported eliminating the filibuster, a lot of my Democratic colleagues said to me, “You’ll be in the minority some day and you’ll be glad we have the filibuster.” My response is that the American people want things done.’ and [U.S. Sen.] Lindsey Graham [R-S.C.], all of them bipartisan. On those same trips we’ve gone to Libya, Jordan, Israel, Egypt. I’ve tried to educate myself on foreign policy, [but] it is a continuing education.
Do you want your ‘brand’ to include foreign policy in the same way as Sen. Lieberman’s? We may have different philosophies, but part of a senator’s role concerns foreign policy because we have to advise and consent on appointments of ambassadors and the secretary of state, and I asked to be on the foreign services committee. I am learning a lot about weapons systems and our national security, I’m on the Veterans Affairs Committee, Judiciary Committee, and on the Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee. I think my brand will continue to involve consumer protection. More investment in infrastructure, but also armed services, where Connecticut has a very direct interest because we build the submarines and the airplane engines and the helicopters that are so vital to our national security. I have two sons who are serving [in the armed forces]. One is in the Marine Corps Reserves — he was deployed to Afghanistan and he came back last spring. The other has just been commissioned in the Navy and he’s continuing his training on the West Coast. The trips I’ve taken have been with other members of the Armed Services Committee, both Republican and Democrat. I keep saying that because these issues as much as possible should be bipartisan.
What about your work on the Judiciary Committee? Judiciary is a natural part of my brand. For a lot of years I’ve been a lawyer, especially a trial lawyer. I’ve been very active in the immigration reform bill, took a very leading role in helping to craft amendments and shape it initially, working with the so-called Gang of Eight. I feel developing my own brand or persona in the U.S. Senate isn’t going to happen overnight. In every 8 June/July 2013
job I’ve adopted the role of the marathon runner, not a sprinter. I was attorney general for 20 years, that was a long time to develop an approach that I think served people well.
Do you think most of your colleagues share the view that we’re trying to have a bipartisan foreign policy? On Armed Services, I can’t even tell you a vote that was a partisan vote. I’m sure there have been some, but by and large it’s bipartisan. Lindsey Graham and I have co-sponsored resolutions along with John Hoeven [R] of North Dakota and Mark Kirk [D-Ill.] that basically urged the administration to stop a nuclear-armed Iran. I think that’s very strong in the national interest, and the resolutions have passed 99-0.
Is that stepping into the Lieberman shoes? I think it was because I took a trip more than a year ago with Lindsey Graham, started talking about foreign policy and realized we agreed on certain issues. John Hoeven was on the same trip. We went to Egypt, Libya, Israel and Afghanistan, and we came back thinking we agree that a nuclear-armed Iran would be a very bad thing for the United States. We urged stronger trade sanctions, better enforcement of those sanctions, not military action, which may distinguish me somewhat from Sen. Lieberman. I do have differences with him.
Do you think the administration is clear enough about Iran having a nuclear weapon? I think the administration is stronger now than perhaps it might have been without the Senate urging it to be strong and vigilant. I think the public has a sense that a nuclear-armed Iran, which has threatened to attack the United States, would jeopardize our national security. Certainly our allies in the area very much fear that prospect.
Is there something we’ll be able to do or not? My hope is that sanctions will work, and Iran will in effect resist the temptation to test us further.
We seem to be ‘partners’ with China and Russia in buying and selling things — but not on this issue. I view them as cooperating with us in the effort to dissuade Iran because they see their interest. But I think the more we can engage other countries, the better. Russia and China and other countries that would be threatened by a nucleararmed Iran should be cooperating even more than they are now. China economically is probably not doing as much as it could. China is usually as much a mystery to me as it is to anyone else.
You seem to be in Connecticut a lot, maybe more than your predecessors. How has that worked for you personally? I come back every weekend — Thursday if I can do it; Friday at the latest. And I’m back here until Monday and I travel the state. If there are events during the week, we have votes, [so] I miss the events. If you were with me over the past weekend, I think you’d say it was still my lifestyle. I just came from an event in East Haven, I was at the Southington Chamber of Commerce earlier today, I was at the Village at Mariner’s Point [in East Haven]. I’m continuing to attend events and to be with people. I think it’s part of my job.
We once thought of states’ rights in the context of the civil-rights movement, when progressives favored more federal solutions. But now it often seems that progressive states want gay marriage, stronger gun control, environmental regulations and see these ideas stymied by federal laws. Where are you on states’ rights today? For many years I was a staunch advocate of states’ rights because as a law enforcer I wanted to enforce our state laws and avoid preemption by the federal government. The preemption doctrine says that when the federal government occupies the field or indicates it’s the sole source of law, then the states can’t enforce their own laws — on consumer issues, all kinds of issues. I’m still an advocate of states’ rights. DOMA is unconstitutional because it discriminates against Connecticut citizens who can be married under our state laws.
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
So why isn’t DOMA being taken up for repeal, considering an apparently changed view of the electorate?
Why is it so terrible to have to have a broad national consensus to get major laws passed?
What is your vision of where our society should end up with regard to immigration reform?
Frankly, right now we lack sufficient numbers of votes. If the U.S. Supreme Court fails to overturn it, eventually we’ll prevail in the U.S. Senate and the Congress because history is on our side in repealing DOMA. Even with all the change [in public opinion], we still lack 60 votes. If you were to ask me what was the most frustrating part of the U.S. Senate [is that simple] majorities don’t rule. Sixty-vote thresholds, the filibuster often stymies progress — even when 90 percent of the American people want responsible gun violence prevention. These measures are supported by the overwhelming majority of the American people and by the majority of the U.S. Senate, and still can’t be passed because of the filibuster. So one of the first votes I cast in the U.S. Senate was to abolish the filibuster.
It’s fine, but 60 votes… I was at the Southington Chamber this morning, and when I explained to people that there are 52 votes for a budget or 54 votes for responsible gun control, they are aghast things aren’t happening because of the filibuster rule. The most common thing said to me is, ‘Can’t you get something done?’ At least with [simple] majority rule, something would happen.
When I’m feeling down about this country, I go to one of our federal courthouses on a Friday, where there are immigration and naturalization ceremonies. Everybody should do it. You should watch people become citizens. They come with their friends and neighbors and family, and with tears in their eyes. It is one of the biggest days of their lives. They are becoming a Unites States
The majority party always wants abolish the filibuster. But wouldn’t you be concerned if your party was in the minority and would want to stop the next DOMA or other antiprogressive legislation? When I supported eliminating the filibuster, a lot of the longtime Democrats, my colleagues, said to me, ‘You’ll be in the minority some day and you’ll be glad we have the filibuster. My response is that the American people want things done. When the majority of people want a measure passed, they feel the democratic institutions should reflect the will of the people. What we have now is not just a filibuster, but abuse of the filibuster. Every vote on judges, on presidential appointees all of a sudden, require 60 votes. The Republicans are using it more frequently than ever before, and abusing it. I really think the American people are so out of patience with what’s happening in Washington, D.C. I felt that way before I went there, but now I feel even more frustrated because I know things can happen — there’s basic consensus — but the filibuster rule prevents it from happening. Take our current budget situation: Right now what we have is a sequester that is arbitrary and irrational. It involves slashing cuts across the board — not only to the air-control towers but for programs for seniors, programs for young people [e.g., Head Start], programs and spending in our defense department that should not be cut. And there are some that should be [cut] that in effect will be continued, very unwisely and wastefully. There are smart cuts that should be made, there are loopholes and tax breaks that should be eliminated. We had 52 votes in the Senate for a plan that would adopt that balanced approach, but 60 votes were needed. So the filibuster is far more than simply procedural or technical.
Let Us KEEP You HEALTHY From The INSIDE OUT
Michael C. Bennick, MD Sidney T. Bogardus, Jr., MD Myron H. Brand, MD Cary A. Caldwell, MD
Joann Hong-Curtis, MD John W. Dobbins,MD Michael T. Lipcan, III, MD Wayne T. Panullo, MD Lisa A. Panzini, MD
William H. Ramsey, MD Prithvi Sreenivasan, MD, MPH Mae K. Tighe, MD David M. Wolfsohn, MD
Warmth • Excellence • Compassion • Quality
GASTROENTOLOGY CGC CONNECTICUT CONSULTANTS, P.C. 203-777-4800
NEW HAVEN • GUILFORD O D•H OR HAMDEN AMDEN MDEN • M MD MILFORD ILLFO ORD • N NORTH O TH OR H HAVEN HAV AVEN AV new haven
9
citizen. I give a little talk and say, ‘Thank you for becoming a citizen because you appreciate what it means to be a citizen a lot more than many [native] Americans do.’ My vision is to continue to be a beacon for the most talented and smartest and freedom-loving people across the globe. People who are persecuted, like my dad was. He came here at the age of 17, spoke virtually no English, had not much more than the shirt on his back, and he knew pretty much nobody here — and this country gave him a chance to succeed.
Blumenthal: The nation needs to do a better job of providing skills training and workforce development.
I think there’s broad consensus about America as a land of immigrants. But the issue is that many of those same people are concerned about an unregulated flow of immigrants, about illegal immigration. For the 11 million who are now here and undocumented, we should provide a path to earn citizenship so they can come out of the shadows and so we can check to determine whether they have criminal backgrounds or are dangerous, and give them a path over a period of time. Right now it’s 13 years [in the proposed immigration reform bill]. That’s longer than I would prefer, but it would give them the chance to pay back taxes, a penalty, to have the background checks. [More] important to me is what it would do for the dreamers — the young people brought here as children. It would give them an expedited path. That provision is very important. The ban on illegal hiring of undocumented immigrants is very important so that employers can’t exploit them [or hire under illegal conditions. [Also] a strengthening of security at the border.
In Connecticut the public appears to be for some immigration reforms, but one area we hear complaints about is availability of visas for high-skilled workers. Is it a myth that jobs are being taken away? The nation needs to do a better job of providing skills training and workforce development.
Photo: Anthony DeCarlo
Get Your New Look
We’re Gonna Make Your Day... ZH LRQ +X$W/V) Q ' %U\OR LP %&UXDW \]RXLOU LD 7 %ORZ ! Imagine No
Post Your Event & Event Facility for Free!
www.CTcalendar.com
10 June/July 2013
FRIZZ!!
age r Facebook p Check out ou After photos! d for Be fore an $
$ 0 Regularly 35
Now 250
63 Cedar St. Branford 203-488-5911 Like Us on
s Hair s Facials s Massage s Waxing s Make-Up s Corrective Color s Keratin treatments s Hair Extensions s Bridal Upwork s Threading s Manicures & Pedicures
&
Omni Hotel at Yale 155 Temple St. New Haven 203-865-5911
Check out our new website jobellasalons.com
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
I’ve advocated a number of measures: the Community College Innovation Act, Pathways to Work — a number of measures that would increase the support, financially and otherwise, for skills training in our community colleges and our technical high schools. As I go around the state, employers and business people say they have openings they can’t fill because they can’t find people with the right skills to fill them. The nation should provide STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] education so we have people with computerscience background, additive technology skills. These are absolutely necessary. In the meantime, the immigration laws should expand the number of high-skilled visas at least temporarily to enable businesses to fill those jobs. Businesses need the assistance of those people. So I have supported expanding the number of H1B visas, but to use the fees and the money generated by those visas [to expand training for U.S. citizens]. That’s an important part of the immigration reform law, in that it would provide funding for STEM education.
Many people cite cultural issues at the heart of education deficiencies — not just in science, but many fields from carpentry to culinary work to science.
How well do you think Connecticut does on that score?
I think people want to work, and if we give them the right skills they’ll work in the jobs that match those skills.
Connecticut can do better. One of my missions has been to talk to businesses, to go and listen to employers about what’s needed to put people back to work. Job creation depends on preparing people for the workforce.
What’s in our way? We are already spending a lot of money trying to educate people.
Where do you and your colleagues see this engine of America re-starting?
One of the major problems of this country is the trillion-plus dollars of student debt that burden people for years and years after they leave school. For-profit colleges that have misleading pitches to young people, including those in the military. They leave with huge debt and no degree. There is the challenge of eliminating or reducing student debt, and giving people a way to avoid that crushing debt, and also give them skills really needed in society. A four-year institution may not be the answer for everyone. College is a good thing for a lot of people but not for everyone. What’s needed is college, community college or technical training, matching skills to jobs.
The companies will bring jobs back if we can provide them with the skilled workers to fill those jobs. American workers are the best in the world, and ultimately the cost of a talented and dedicated labor force outweigh the benefits of going abroad. Some companies will continue to move plants abroad, but they’re doing it now because the tax code rewards them. Companies are rewarded by current tax law for shipping jobs overseas. They can defer the profits, they can take deductions for the expenses right now, and we need to close that tax break. Y
WAV E 1046 Chapel St. • 203.624.3032 • New Haven • wavenewhaven.com
Open every day FREE PARKING at Kirks on Crown St. (across from Bar)
1 hour parking at Kirk’s (across from Bar) new haven
11
Fun Sun IN THE
Your 2013 SUMMER Bucket LIST. Making the Most of Your Season in the Sun On the trail in Hammonasset
PHOTO: LESLEY ROY 12 June/July 2013
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
CEDAR ISLAND TRAIL
Hammonasset’s
Trail Mix E
very Hammonasset hiker knows Willard’s Island Nature Trail and the shorter (but spectacular) Meig’s Point Trail, but very few know of a hidden away magical escape known as Cedar Island Trail. In fact, on the two occasions I walked the trail over a recent packed holiday weekend, only other two walkers were spotted, far fewer than the number of egrets and nesting osprey which can be observed from the walkway. The entrance to Cedar Island Trail is found amid the trees, perhaps a tenth of a mile to the right of Willard’s Island Nature Trail as you walk from
the parking lot. There is no sign. I even had to call Meig’s Point Nature Center to get a designation as neither the park map show it nor did the toll-taker at the gate have the foggiest idea what I was talking about. There is a sign, however, indicating that the project is funded by the Long Island Sound Fund License Plate Program, so you’ll know it when you do find it. According to Russ Miller, director of the Nature Center, the trail used to be a mail road to get to Cedar Island when the first settlers were in the area in the 1700s. The trail does actually go to Cedar Island, but you’d have to go through the marsh (which one cannot do without a permit).
Once you locate the entrance, the trail is a straight shot of a quarter of a mile (one way) through a quiet, lightly wooded path, crossing over a bridge and overlooking osprey nests. The trail leads to a boardwalk that ends with an observation platform with a 360-degree view of Long Island Sound, Cedar Island (an island belonging to the town of Clinton), and the marshes of Hammonasset. You’re elevated (literally and figuratively), and will feel a million miles away from the beach crowds and wherever you came. It’s a great place to read, reflect or just relax. The phone doesn’t ring, there are no interruptions, and the panoramic view is spectacular. Next time your clan wants to hit the beach but you seek solitude, here’s a place that will please all. I’m just kind of wondering if I should have shared it. Hammonasset Beach State Park, 1288 Boston Post Rd., Madison (203-245-2785).
— Susan E. Cornell
30%#)!,):%$ s -!3) s (!2/ s .).%2 s ")!.#()
Riders Wanted! LARGEST SELECTION IN THE REGION
Cutting edge technology provides a finish that outperforms the best Alkyd Stains on the market
ke
D A
mi
iello ’
s
n ’A
t y Bi
• SPECIALIZED • MASI • HARO • NINER • BIANCHI WE REPAIR ALL TYPES OF BICYCLES – PERSONALIZED BIKE FITTING –
&OXON 2D 2OUTE .ORTH "RANFORD #4
www.countrypaint.com
D’ANIELLO’S AMITY BIKE, LLC 18 SELDEN ST. WOODBRIDGE (203) 387-6734 AMITYBICYCLES.COM new haven
13
CHAMARD VINEYARDS
Enhance Your Smile
Beyond Grape Expectations 921 State Street New Haven
www.levydental.com 203-865-2245
A Proven Non-Drug Treatment for Depression Get back to well...
Chamard Vineyards, located between Long Island Sound and the Connecticut River at 115 Cow Hill Road in Clinton, was established in 1983.
Today, the winery yields about a dozen different types of wines and produces 6,000 cases annually.
side effects...
Chamard’s French-inspired flavors influenced by the moderating temperatures of Long Island Sound are tasted in its Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, chardonnay, merlot and Pinot Noir.
...right in your doctor’s office
Wine tastings are $15 and include a Riedel glass. Beyond grapes. the winery hosts a singer-songwriter series on Friday and Saturday nights from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Connecticut Psychiatric & Wellness Center 1 Bradley Rd. Suite 905 • Woodbridge, CT
erfectly lined with plump Chardonnay grapes, a long gravel road transports visitors to a retreat on 20 acres of lush New England vines.
The first vines were planted in the spring of 1984 on a 5.5-acre vineyard, which was primarily comprised of chardonnay grapes. The first wine, a chardonnay, was released in November of 1989 for sale to the public.
...without medication
Dr. David M. Aversa, MD, MPH
P
FDA Approved Treatment
(203) 298-9005 • www.ctpsychwellness.com
And for those who want to stomp grapes like Lucille Ball, Chamard Vineyards offers a make-your-own barrel of wine which includes grape
and vineyard selection, label design and bottling in their wine cellar ranging from $4,000 ($16 per bottle) to $7,500 ($30 per bottle.). Last fall, in an effort to support local food producers, Chamard owner Jonathan Rothberg partnered with executive chef Brad Stabinsky to open a bistro featuring a locally sourced menu. The cozy restaurant, with sweeping views of the vineyards, seats about 35 guests. Visitors can enjoy French-inspired cuisine in the rustic dining room that features reclaimed items from the property, such as the tables made with thick slabs of wood from a persimmon tree that fell during Hurricane Irene in 2011. The menu offers salads and small plates from $4 to $16, sandwiches and panini from $10 to $13 and entrées from $11 to $25. A burger made with grass-fed beef from the Four Mile River Farm in Old Lyme, a roast loin of lamb from Sepe Farm in Sandy Hook, and a platter of local cheeses are a few items on the bistro’s one-page menu. The tasting room ad bistro is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays. To learn more phone 860-664-0299 or visit Chamard.com. — Makayla Silva
ELEPHANT’S TRUNK
Early Birds Catch the Worm
Connecting Money & Life
A l e x M a d l e n e r, M D , C F P ® Managing Principal Mel Esdaile, MIA Principal
T
he vendors start their day under the moon and stars. It’s not quite 5 a.m. and there is a slinking line of eager antiques dealers ready to unpack and start their morning of wheeling and dealing. When the go-ahead is given over the walkie-talkie, the hundreds of vendors enter the dew-coated field to get ready for the “hardcore buyers” who come ready to shop at daybreak. “Good morning!” “How much is that?” “Well, would you take…” is heard among the early-morning crowds sifting through the sea of rusty relics. The market began in the early 1970s as a small boutique known as the Elephant’s Trunk Too in a stately Victorian home located in the front of the property. When the boutique closed in 1976, the new owners changed the name to the Elephant’s Trunk Country Flea Market. Held on Sundays, the early flea market had a handful of vendors. Fifteen vendors was considered a big day. Today, about 400 vendors set up shop every Sunday in the 55-acre
field to showcase their newest treasures beginning each March, weather permitting.
36 State Street, Suite 2 North Haven, CT 06473 www.opencircleadvisors.com 203-985-0448
Roughly 60 percent of fleamarket vendors sell antiques and collectibles, including vintage and new tools, vintage clothing, coins, antique toys, antique furniture, Depression-era glass and pewter. The Elephant’s Trunk changes with the seasons bringing a variety of plants, shrubs and flowers during springtime and cider, apples, pumpkins, dried decorative ears of corn and mums during autumn. Fresh tomatoes, corn, beans and other vegetables are available from May through September and wreaths, roping and holiday decorations are seen in late November to early December. Vendors set up shop from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. From 5:45 a.m. to 7 a.m. there is a $20 early bird fee. From 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. admission is $2 (cash only). Elephant’s Truck Flea Market is at 490 Danbury Rd., New Milford. Its website is etflea.com. — Makayla Silva
Kitchens By Gedney, Inc. Fine Cabinetry for the Home www.gedneykitchens.com Madison • 203.245.2172 •
new haven
15
Sweet Sounds OF
SUMMER
YALE CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL
I
am perhaps the only person in America who does not believe that time travel begins with the phrase “Sherman, set the Way-Back Machine for the year…” All I have to do to set the clock back to 1970 is to walk into the Music Shed at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. I was still in high school when I first went to Norfolk to hear a concert, though I’ll be darned if I can remember what I heard or who played it. All I remember is sitting on those uncomfortable wooden chairs, sweating like a longshoreman on a hot, sticky summer’s night and thinking to myself, “This is what music must sound like from inside a violin.” That, and the autographed photograph of
16 June/July 2013
Sergei Rachmaninoff on the wall. The Music Shed itself is something of a time warp — no air conditioning, wood all around you, chairs crafted in complete disregard of any post-1940 ergonomic principle. The local fire marshal must have palpitations every time he so much as thinks about the place. But it remains unique in all the world as a place to hear music. Music simply sounds warmer when played there. It is one of those places you have to want to get to; you are never “just in the neighborhood” of this picture-postcard-perfect Litchfield County hamlet. A picnic on the lawn is a nice touch, but it is not required. After driving heaven-alone-knows how long to get there, you are ready for a concert. That it is played in a nearperfect venue is the payoff. The highlight of the coming season is the July 6 final concert of the Tokyo String Quartet (which is retiring 44 years after forming at Julliard), for which
stratospheric prices are being charged. But even with an unusually strong schedule this summer, the one concert I do not plan to miss takes place July 12 when baritone Randall Scarlatta sings Franz Schubert’s Winterreise accompanied by my favorite pianist, Peter Frankl. I have waited decades to hear Winterreise played by a pianist who has the emotional, intellectual and technical skills to leave an audience limp in its seats and feeling as though they have just witnessed the most intimate, soulshattering personal tragedy. And that is a trip worth making me feel like I am 17 again. The Norfolk concert season begins June 22 (Yale Choral Artists) and concludes August 17 (Norfolk Choral Festival). At least 14 concerts feature free admission. For schedule and ticket information phone 860-542-3000 or visit music.yale.edu/norfolk. — Ivan Katz
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
COVENTRY FARMERS MARKET
A Countr y Fair Ever y Sunday
R
enowned as the largest and most diverse farmers market in the state, the Coventry Farmers Market, held on the 18th-century Nathan Hale Homestead in this quaint Tolland County hamlet, opened for the season June 2. Each Sunday through October, the destination farmers market is like a country fair featuring (depending on the week) between 50 and 100 curated vendors. “A typical market day might offer fiddle music, pony rides, ducklings to hold, a canning class, a swap of handmade and homegrown things, people picnicking and wine tastings,” market master Winter Caplanson explains. “Our customers dubbed it ‘A Country Fair Every Sunday.’ That fits.” The market specializes in organic, heirloom, ethnic and gourmet fruits and vegetables, free-range eggs, farmstead cheeses and grassfed beef. Smoked bacon, European pastries,
chocolate fudge and maple syrup are also available at the weekly marketplace. Local artists and artisans not only sell their hemp clothing, goat’s milk soaps, stoneware, beeswax candles, vintage cotton tote bags and handspun yarns — but also share how they were created. The market draws 75,000 visitors annually to the 500 acres of picturesque bucolic landscape on the Hale homestead, and generates approximately $500,000 in sales. Visitors can relax under a maple tree and listen to the live entertainment, learn something new from a sustainable-living presentation or enjoy a live cooking demonstration.
culminating in a skillet toss), the Connecticut Artisan Cheese Festival (featuring tastings, cheese-making classes for children and grownups and the state’s first cheese rolling contest) and Cider & Moonshine (featuring hard and sweet cider and Onyx Moonshine tastings). The Coventry Farmers Market is open 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Sunday through October. It is held at the Nathan Hale Homestead, 2299 South Street in Coventry. Visit coventryfarmersmarket.com. — Makayla Silva
The market also hosts special events each week including perennial favorites like the Seaside Social with Max’s Oyster Bar, the Connecticut Heirloom Exposition (July 21) and Blues, Brews & BBQ. New events this year are a Cast Iron Skillet Shindig (teaching cast-iron cooking and
new haven
17
KAYAKING THE THIMBLES
Island Hopping Y
Once the summer season begins, lines of visitors stretch down the docks of Stony Creek ready to hop on the tour boats or water taxis to take them around the islands.
The Thimble Islands, an archipelago of several hundred islands, rocks and sandbars, are located off the coast of Branford, south of Stony Creek.
While guided tours like the Sea Mist and the Volsunga IV (203-488-8905, thimbleislandcruise. com) offer 45-minute narrated tours of the islands a few times daily during warm-weather months, perhaps the best way to see the islands up close is by hopping into a kayak.
ou can drive up the Connecticut coastline and easily pass by the exit to one of Connecticut’s best kept secrets.
Between the islands’ pink-tinged granite bottoms, and the lush covering of pines and thickets, the Thimble Islands look like chunks of Maine’s rocky coastline. On a marine chart 20 islands are visible, but in fact there are 365 islands, some visible only at low tide. Thirty-two of the islands are habitable. The largest, at 17 acres, is Horse Island, owned by the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History.
18 June/July 2013
Threading through the four-mile route, paddlers will get a glimpse of island life: children diving off rocks into the Sound; dinghies carrying islanders back to their homes with groceries; or locals lounging in hammocks on balmy summer evenings. Owned by Jerry Wylie, Connecticut Coastal Kayaking (860-391-3837, ctcoastalkayaking.
Photo: Jerry Wylie
com) offers kayaking tours of the islands to match skill levels. A three-hour tour costs $80. Tours are offered twice each month. Weather depending, Wylie stops for picnics on Outer Island, part of the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge. For those who want to skip the tour, Action Sports (203-481-5511, actionsportsct.com) in Branford offers kayak rentals and will even deliver kayaks right to the launch site. — Makayla Silva
Photo courtesy: Jerry Wylie, Connecticut Coastal Kayaking. For information on kayaking tours visit: www.ctcoastalkayaking.com
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Why use multiple companies when The Green Team is your one stop landscape shop for all your landscaping needs! We can help you design and create your very own outdoor oasis! Our landscape professionals study all elements of your yard to ensure we design and build the landscape you desire.
The Green Team offers the following services:
Caroline Wozniacki after her tournament Victory. Wozniacki returns to the New Haven Open again this year
Spring and Fall Clean-Ups
Photo: Steve Blazo
Lawn Mowing and Fertilization
Bed and Flower Maintenance
THE NEW HAVEN OPEN Shrub pruning
OPEN Season for TENNIS
T
ennis fans far and wide flock to the Elm City every summer for the New Haven Open at Yale, a premier tournament on the WTA Tour played outdoors on hardcourts. The tournament has gone by a few different names (most recently Pilot Pen Tennis), undergone several program changes, and has taken place in many locations over the years, but has been situated in New Haven at the Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center since 1998. The center is the fourth largest tennis venue in the world by capacity (it holds 15,000 spectators). The New Haven Open tournament dates back to 1948 in Sacramento, Calif., when it was then the U.S. Women’s Hardcourt Championships, and has since been situated in states out West, down South, and in New England. While in New Haven under the Pilot Pen name, some of the sport’s all stars had big wins, including Lindsay Davenport and Venus Williams. The event became a joint men’s and women’s tournament from 2005 until 2011, when the men’s competition was axed, and moved to North Carolina. And the tournament continues to bring in the talent; the 2012 event featured five of the world’s top 10 players, including Wimbledon champs Petra
Kvitova, Agnieszka Radwanska, and four-time New Haven Open champion Caroline Wozniacki. The tournaments are broadcast on ESPN2 and around the world. The New Haven Open offers plenty more than just the matches themselves, too. Throughout the tournament will be various events, specials and giveaways, including children’s tennis clinics, fitness competitions and autograph sessions. A special Comfort Food & Cocktails event will be held on-site (tickets $125) featuring dishes from a host of prime local restaurants. A free shuttle also will be available for those looking to go downtown. Box seats to the tournament range from $492 to $970 per seat, depending on row; other ticket packages are available from $107 to $151 for either night sessions, a pick of four sessions, or the final four matches. Daily ticket prices vary by the day, ranging from as low as $7 to $58 each, while courtside tickets run form $67 to $114. Group and family packages are also available. The New Haven Open takes place August 16-24 at the Connecticut Tennis Center at Yale, 45 Yale Ave., in New Haven. Matches take place daily during that time. Call 1-855-464-8366 or visit newhavenopen.com for more information. — John Mordecai
Mulching
Stonework
Call today for a complementary consultation! 203-272-0391
Stay Injury Free This Bicycle Season WEAR YOUR HELMET...
MILLS LAW FIRM Representing Cyclists Throughout Connecticut John W. Mills Board Certified Civil Law Trial Advocate
For 9 More Ways to Stay Safe on Your Bicycle Visit Safety Tips @ www.millslawÀrm.org
One Whitney Ave, New Haven 203.776.4500 new haven
19
STRATFORD BRAKETTES
S
ure, summer in America is about “baseball, hot dogs and Chevrolet.” But what about baseball’s distaff sibling?
In a League of Their Own
The Brakettes are (to mix a metaphor) the Babe Ruth of women’s professional softball. Since their creation in the summer of 1947 as the Raybestos Girl All-Stars (the name was changed the following year to the inelegant “Brakettes” to promote the automobile brake lining Raybestos manufactured), the country has fought four major wars and a dozen men have occupied the White House.
Over that 66-year span the Brakettes have chalked up more than 3,000 victories (and a winning percentage that rivals the Harlem Globetrotters) and fielded such immortals as pitcher Joan Joyce of Waterbury, who in the 1960s and ‘70s had an incomprehensible won-loss record of 429-27 and whom experts compared with Babe Didrikson Zaharias as the greatest female athlete in history. Joyce is just one of 19 Brakettes enshrined in the National Hall of Fame.
20 June/July 2013
Last year the club posted a 68-3 won-loss record on the way to their third consecutive Women’s Major Softball National Championship. Not too shabby. The Brakettes experience is enhanced by their sweet digs, cozy (seating capacity: 1,800) Frank DeLuca Hall of Fame Field on Stratford’s South Main Street, hard by the mouth of the Housatonic River. In addition to 28 Brakettes home games, the park will host the fifth annual Women’s Major Softball National Championships August 8-11.
Last-second update: The Brakettes kicked off their 2013 campaign the first weekend of June the same way they left off 2012 — with a pair of victories (both shutouts, 10-0 and 8-0) over the Stratford Seahawks at DeLuca Field. Same as it ever was. Tickets for Brakettes home games at Frank DeLuca Hall of Fame Field at 1000 Main Street, Stratford range from $8 (box seat) to $5 (bleachers). For schedules or additional information call 203-379-7262 or Brakettes.com. — Michael C. Bingham
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
MANSFIELD DRIVE-IN THEATRE
Comfort and Security .......
Brand New 55 & Over Active Adult Community www.firstplacewesthaven.com
510 FIRST AVENUE, WEST HAVEN, CT
Still On a Roll F or generations, families have piled into their cars, stocked up on snacks and blankets and headed to the local drive-in to watch movies under the stars.
The Mansfield Drive-in Theatre, one of the two last remaining drive-in theaters in the state (the other is Barkhamstead’s Pleasant Valley Drive-in), continues to offer a slice of Americana to patrons looking to replicate their nostalgic experiences of yesteryear. Situated in a ten-acre open field, Mansfield is the only drive-in with three screens showing first-run double-features. The largest screen measures 55 by 110 feet. In the heyday of the drive-in, there were roughly 4,000 screens across the country. They were an iconic staple of the Happy Days generation. Today, about 400 remain nationwide. Still, the cars continue to roll in and the films roll on. The allure of the drive-in perhaps is not seeing the newest Leo flick, or the next Iron Man sequel, nor the large-scale special effects of the newest Spielberg blockbuster — it’s simply the experience.
In a generation jaded by IMAX screens, stadium seating and inflated ticket and concession prices, the antiquated drive-in theater allows families to enjoy the latest flick from the comfort of their cars. It’s timeless. “It’s still a great place to bring your kids,” owner Michael Jungden says. “We always try to have one screen dedicated to a family film, if one is available. Generations come back and bring their kids. Grandparents bring their grandchildren.” An enduring time capsule from generations past, the Mansfield Drive-in shows first-run double features Friday through Sunday nights beginning around 8:30 p.m., just after sunset. Tickets cost $10 per adult, $5 for children under 12, and free for children under three. Wednesday night is Carload Night where everyone in the car gets in for $20.
New 2 bedroom/1 bath units Stainless steel appliances Granite Countertops Gas heat and central A/C Laundry in every unit Wi-fi throughout Storage units on each floor Secure parking Low condo fees Prices starting at $154,900 3% Down for Qualified Buyers
First Place Condominiums
Open: Sunday 1-4 Tuesdays & Thursdays 4-6 or by appointment
203-795-8060
Dr. Aaron Gross
Pain-free procedures with the STA system Laser dentistry with Waterlase MD Single visit CEREC Crowns and On-lays Esthetic bonding, veneers & tooth whitening Patient Education
We welcome Dr. Diana Hede to our practice!
Mansfield Drive-in Theatre, 228 Stafford Rd., Mansfield (860-4234441). For showtimes and information visit mansfielddrivein.com. — Makayla Silva
1240 Whitney Avenue, Hamden 203-287-0666 www.whitneyvilledental.com new haven
21
A Yale Divinity School debate opens many cans of worms about American Christianity
THE Death OF Religion? By MICHAEL C. BINGHAM
If Christianity in America is not dead, it is certainly in desperate retreat. During the 2008 Presidential campaign thencandidate Barack Obama ridiculed working-class Pennsylvanians for “clinging to their guns and religion” because they could not cope with sociopolitical change — change such as the election of Barack Obama, whom close to half of America views as a suspect Christian. 22 June/July 2013
If one agrees that Christianity in America is dead or dying, there are two competing explanations, depending on your political orthodoxy. The liberal view is that Christianity is dying because it hasn’t kept pace with changes in American society. Conservatives maintain that Christianity is in trouble precisely because it has overreacted to social change and in doing so surrendered its core principles. Both viewpoints were earnestly represented at an April 25 “debate” (it really wasn’t) on the future of the Christian faith in America at the Yale Divinity School’s Marquand Chapel. Some 200 attended. In this corner: New York Times op-ed columnist (one is tempted to add “token conservative”) Ross Douthat (a Hamden Hall Country Day School product). In his 2012 book, Bad Religion: How We Became a Nation of Heretics, Douthat writes that “Traditional Christian teachings have been warped into justifications for solipsism and anti-intellectualism, jingoism and utopianism, selfishness and greed.” Douthat attributes this to a “choose-your-own-Jesus mentality [that]
encourages spiritual seekers to screen out discomfiting parts of the New Testament and focus only on whichever Christ they find most congenial.” In the other corner: Diana Butler Bass, an author and independent scholar who looks at American religion and culture in historical and social context. In her 2012 book, Christianity After Religion: The End of Church and the Birth of a New Spiritual Awakening, Bass explores why Christianity in the U.S. seems to have lost the cultural influence and popular acceptance it previously enjoyed. Rather than summoning the Christian orthodoxy of the past to forge the future, Bass suggests that ancient traditions need to be reformed, renewed and re-imagined in ways that “make sense to contemporary people.” The event had an unusual two-part format, with two moderators: Bob Abernethy, host of the PBS program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly, and YDS alumna Lillian Daniel, author of When Spiritual But Not Religious Is Not Enough (2013).
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
“It’s not just disillusion with the church, it’s political leaders, Wall Street, traditional family structure.” So, how did we get here — and why has so much changed in a such a short span of time? As recently as the mid-20th century, observed Bass, mainstream Christian religious institutions in the United States “were extraordinarily successful. But as society changed, they continued to live off [their traditional historical] capital — or they simply didn’t notice.” Not surprising coming from the author who asserted that “Conventional, comforting Christianity has failed.” Douthat noted that the 1960s and ‘70s were an “era of crisis” — for Christianity and America itself. For example, for many, especially young people, the sexual revolution rendered traditional Christian ethics such as chastity outside of marriage and monogamy hopelessly “out of step,” Douthat said. More recently, political polarization in the U.S. “has made it harder for Christians to find a place to stand and be identified first as Christians,” he added. As a set-to of ideological opponents, the discussion generated more light than heat. One tense moment came, however when secondhalf moderator Daniel (by far the more incisive questioner) asked whether America had become a nation of “religious dilettantes.” The question had a context: Both Bass and Douthat have changed denominations since childhood — Bass from Methodism to Episcopalianism; Douthat from Episcopalianism (“We were traded,” he joked to Bass) to Catholicism.
As for the future, Bass expressed the hope that American Christianity may be entering a kind of latter-day Great Awakening. She cited the “personal encounter[s] early Methodists had with God” that led many to form new churches and find new ways to worship. “This is all part of a [process] we’re still in the early part of,” she predicted. But “institutional reorientation” of the American church “may be a couple of decades off [in the future].” Douthat noted that the church is hardly among traditional American institutions in attracting skepticism and cynicism. “It’s not just disillusion with the church,” he said. “It’s political leaders, Wall Street, traditional family structure” that have come under fire in recent years.
countered Douthat. “Traditionally in cities you had the Polish parish, the Irish parish.” He added that he saw a troubling harbinger for American Catholicism in the turning of many traditionally Catholic Latinos to Pentecostalism. And then there’s the iconography of Christianity itself. “American Christianity has gotten sweepingly ugly,” said Douthat, who cited a rejection of traditional values in realms such as music and even the architecture of church buildings themselves, creating a “loss of coherence in Christian traditional, including physical spaces.”
Ah, the family. “[Geographic] places with the most stable families and greatest economic mobility are the places with the strongest churches,” asserted Douthat (who likely was not referring to Connecticut). In addition, “People in religious communities are having more kids.”
Then there’s the whole gay thing. To an assertion by moderator Daniel that “Young people perceive the church as anti-gay,” Bass responded that “Fifty-four percent of Catholics approve of gay marriage.” Douthat called the anti-gay perception an “unsolvable problem the church is facing. What traditional religion asks of gay people — chastity — is harder than what it asks of straight people.”
Of such “religious communities,” Bass said she feared “clustering in negative ways,” resulting in “atomized communities — a ‘gated’ effect. They have no engagement with the larger world.”
On one issue both Bass and Douthat agreed was the need for the church to find new ways to talk about issues that scarcely would have made the radar a half-century ago.
As a positive example she cited the Catholic Church “because it brings together across different ethnic and income groups,” she said. Or does it?
“The central problem of liberal Protestantism is that it doesn’t know what to say about American sexual dysfunction — broken homes, fatherlessness, pornography” said Douthat.
“Historically, most successful Catholic communities were ethnically homogeneous,”
To which Bass added, “The liberal traditional is reformulating how we talk about it.”
But Bass took umbrage at the question, calling it “kind of insulting.” She noted that “Some ‘cradle’ Episcopalians called me not a ‘real’ Episcopalian even though I joined the church in 1980.” Douthet retorted that Christianity indeed suffered from the lack of willingness on the part even of churchgoing Americans to make a lifelong commitment to s single faith — the societal danger of self-indulging in “a choice that doesn’t ultimately require making a choice.” Bass sees hope in having “more people sitting at the table” — i.e., greater inclusiveness. “Some churches have been working to bring more people to the table — women clergy, LBGT folks.” While that’s indisputable, Douthat suggested inclusion is more a feel-good false god than a guiding light for moving forward. “The guiding presumption of mainline churches is [to] broaden the tent and the pews will fill,” he said. “That hasn’t happened.” L-r) Author Bass, moderator Abernethy and NYT columnist Douthat in Marquand Chapel. new haven
23
By LYNN FREDRICKSEN
The world comes to New Haven for the 18th Arts & Ideas extravaganza
A
s the 18th annual International Festival of Arts & Ideas returns its organizers are doing everything possible to make it easy for people to attend. From working to get shuttle buses and volunteers organized, to reserving 700 hotel rooms to accommodate visiting artists and performers, the two-week festival takes months of preparation. But instead of finding it tiring, those involved with doing the work are caught up in the festival’s energy weeks before it kicks off. “We’re really excited about it,” crows Mary Lou Aleskie, the festival’s director. “We work hard not only to bring the extraordinary to the festival but to connect it to what is already extraordinary right here.” She mentions Yale, the galleries, the theaters, the restaurants. “There’s a lot of interesting things happening,” Aleskie says. “People are coming from Ethiopia, Montreal, India — all over the globe.” The 15-day festival began June 15 and occupies nearly every nook and cranny in New Haven with the New Haven Green serving as its center of gravity. This year’s theme is “Dreaming New Worlds,” and Aleskie is having a lot of fun with that. “It’s multi-disciplinarian and farreaching,” she says of the theme. In particular, she points to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a production she describes as “like no other.” She is excited that the festival is the only place in the New York metropolitan area where this production can be seen. On a recent Monday afternoon, her 12th floor office is a hub of activity with staffers and a team of volunteers doing everything from preparing mailings to assembling a little red wagon. While the festive atmosphere is fitting for a place where the enormous International Festival of Arts & Ideas takes shape, it’s also serious business — as is the festival itself. Last year’s event brought approximately 145,000 spectators from all over the world and carried a whopping $25 million in economic impact, according to a festival commissioned survey conducted by Quinnipiac University. This year is anticipated to attract even larger audiences and generate more revenue. “Our largest audiences are for the
free concerts,” Aleskie said. “We’re expecting large crowdss year.” She mentions award-winning vocalist Aaron Neville who will performed June 15 at the start of the festival. Because so many attendees come from outside of New Haven, Aleskie and her staff have made arrangements for additional shuttle buses to bring people from Union Station to downtown. They also recognize the difficulty of attempting to bring a lawn chair on the train. Thus, they plan to offer chairs for rent for a nominal fee. When asked about bringing people in from the suburbs, Aleskie turns to some figures compiled by Quinnipiac researchers. By the numbers, of those 145,000 spectators at last year’s event, 45 percent were from New Haven, 15 percent were from outside of Connecticut and the remaining 40 percent were from outside of New Haven, but within Connecticut. “We always work to get more people coming,” she says. “Hopefully with the lure of things you can see nowhere else people will make the trip.” And there will be quite an array of new and exciting things to see and do. In addition to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, other stage productions include Freewheelers, a glimpse into the history of corset and bicycle manufacturing in 19th-century New Haven; The Quiet Volume, about books, reading and libraries; Stuck Elevator, a true story about an unlucky immigrant trapped for 81 hours in an elevator; Sequence 8, by a Canadian circus company; and numerous performances geared for family audiences. Everything planned is in keeping with the “Dreaming New Worlds” theme. Everything is new, vibrant, fresh and bold.
On the dance scene, Shantala Shivalingappa will make her U.S. debut with her solo, “Akasha,” a dance program largely influenced by her Indian heritage. While the festival is citywide with numerous performances, talks and tours taking place throughout the city, the Green will serve as the festival’s main hub with non-stop performances there: Debo Band & Fendika will
THE STORE FOR MUSIC ENTHUSIASTS 85 Willow Street, New Haven, CT 06511 203.799.6400 | audioetc.com
Summertime and the Living is Easier Indoors or out,Tower One/ Tower East residents are having the time of their lives! Enjoy exercise classes, art classes, lectures, movies, dining with friends and family; the list is endless!
ur o Call NOW for a tour! r fo ts! s n n io tme t a Tower One/Tower East ic par l p 18 Tower Lane A p A ing New Haven, CT 06519 g v (203) 772-1816 tin Li p www.towerone.org e d cc iste Like us on A ss Facebook ow A N ew An active senior N living community
delight audiences with Ethiopian dance and rhythms; the Red Trouser Show performs acrobatics and comedy; and numerous free concerts will fill the air with music as artists take to the Elm Street Stage. Also on the Green, on weekdays, there is a full slate planned to delight family audiences: Faustwork Mask Theatre; Ginga Brasileira, an Afro-Brazilian dance extravaganza; Jungle Tales; and the Little Farm Show complete with an educational message about food choices. Children will also enjoy the fun of watching Vanessa Trien and the Jumping Monkeys, as well as a live concert titled, “Beethoven’s Wig.” Another must-see is Swiss circus artist David Dimitri’s L’homme Cirque in which he performs as a one-man circus with a tent large enough to accommodate 200 people all of whom will be kept rapt and then surprised with his unique exit. The Arts portion of the festival is a all-encompassing and vibrant piece of the festival pie. But the “Ideas” component is every bit as intriguing. Numerous free lectures and conversations are planned throughout the city on nearly every subject imaginable. At the Yale University Art Gallery, Aaron
Neville discussed his life and work; the “Made in Connecticut: Recipients of the Governor’s Arts Awards” celebrated state artists; and “Preparing for 2050: The Changing Face of Race in America” was a panel discussion on the future of race in America. At the Yale Center for British Art, programs included: “Joshua Foer: Revisiting the Hunter-Gatherer Life”; and “Reintegrate: Enhancing Collaborations in the Arts & Sciences”; as well as the upcoming “Demographics and the U.S. Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities.” Attendees may also hear Shantala Shivalingappa, Byron Au Yong and Danny Mekonnen discuss working across cultures. Film buffs enjoyed “Historical Verite: The Documentaries of Spike Lee and Sam Pollard,” which included a Q&A with the legendary director, in the Whitney Humanities Center at 53 Wall Street. In a city where food itself has long been regarded as an art form, numerous local restaurants will be on hand with their offerings. On Thursdays and Fridays, pizzerias will provide a variety of their specialty pies at a Pizza Fest on the Green. Proceeds will benefit New Haven’s Connection Fund.
Three Food Tours will offer samples of three restaurants in the Ninth Square, Crown Street or downtown neighborhoods. Food tours are $40. While most events are free, some require tickets that range in price depending on the activity. Festival organizers have also taken the time to put together some ticket packages that range in price from $689 down to $60. The latter is a full day of activities collectively known as “Festival Day,” which starts with either a bike or walking tour, includes an Ideas program and the participant’s choice of Midsummer Night’s Dream, Stuck Elevator, Freewheelers, Compagnie Kafig or Sequence 8. It also includes L’homme Cirque in the early evening then winds up with a concert on the Green to complete the day. For $689 one gets the highest-end “See-Everything Package,” which offers an adventurous Festival experience. Visit the Festival’s super-user-friendly website, ArtIdea.org. Y
S C H O O L
Join Us! Admission Open House Sunday, October 20 12:00 pm — For students entering grades 9–12 2:00 pm — For students entering grades 7–8 Find out more: 203.397.1001 x211 or admission@hopkins.edu www.hopkins.edu 986 Forest Road, New Haven, CT 06515 26 June/July 2013
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Walk This Way With 29 walking tours to choose from, the International Festival of Arts & Ideas is set to lead people on a journey through history and its neighborhoods. Pedestrians can choose walks of different durations ranging from 45 minutes to two hours to learn about all things New Haven. Take a look at the New Haven Crypt at Center Church on the Green, or learn about the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. Tours will take people through the Yale campus, East Rock Park, downtown farmers markets and through the beautiful Beaver Hills section. In conjunction with many of the walks, representatives from several galleries and museums will be on hand to answer questions and provide informative talks on everything ranging from the Land of the Pharaohs at the Peabody Museum to outdoor sculpture and the Yale University Art Gallery. Participants can learn about Chatham Square, go backstage at the Shubert Theater or visit the Marsh Botanic Garden. And no tour offering would be complete without an opportunity to visit Grove Street Cemetery. Led by members of the Friends of Grove Street Cemetery, this walk will offer a look at unique headstones and the final resting places of some of New Haven’s most famous founders and notable residents. Geared to provide visitors and locals with an up-close look at the nuts and bolts of New Haven, the tours offer something for everyone. While the tours and talks are free, some require advance registration. To learn more, visit artidea.org/ walkingtours. – L.F. (Crypt tour sold out, Beinecke tour sold out)
Grove Street Cemetary Photo: :Steve Blazo new haven
27
erence Kindergarten- Grade 8 Our unique approach is to build educational excellence on a foundation of Jewish tradition, values, the importance of weaving learning into living.
(203) 389-5500 www.ezraacademy.net
4FSWJOH /FX )BWFO $PVOUZ 4JODF 4FS WJOH 0 W $JUJFT 8P FS SMEXJEF
Freewheelers New Haven is a melting pot rich in history with its buildings, industries, folklore and people. More than a century has passed since Pierre Lallement patented the bicycle and the people of New Haven have since watched as his invention has evolved from a mere curiosity, to becoming a viable form of transportation for many urbanites. The same year Lallement patented the bicycle, another life-changing industry started up with a bang — the corset came into being. Both made big differences.
)Z T *T 0OF PG UIF 5PQ -JNPVTJOFT 0QFSBUPST *O "NFSJDB )BT 0OF PG UIF -BSHFTU /FXFTU 'MFFUT JO $POOFDUJDVU
Freewheelers, a production of dance, song and storytelling by New Haven’s own Broken Umbrella Theatre company, tells the story of the invention and manufacture of the corset and the bicycle and it does so in one of the city’s most recognized
places — the former Horowitz Bros. building at 760 Chapel Street. “The bicycle was patented the same year as the invention of the corset,� says Mary Lou Aleskie, the festival’s executive director. Both those took place in 1866 and were a pivotal part of the onset of the women’s movement. Early in the 20th century garment workers, most of them females, organized to form a union that would protect them from unsafe working conditions and ensure a better workplace overall. The now-vacant Horowitz building will be transformed into a theater space for reasonably priced performances throughout the 15-day festival. Tickets are $35. For show times visit artidea.org. — L.F.
XXX ):4-*.0 DPN ] -*.0
28 June/July 2013
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
It’s Here
Pop-Up Village What do you call something that is so unusual there really isn’t anything to call it? A Pop-Up Village is what you call it. The brainchild of several graduate students at the Yale School of Architecture, the pre-festival moveable Pop-Up Village will visit the Dixwell and Fair Haven neighborhoods as a precurser to the June 15 start of the festival. While visiting the neighborhoods, it will provide a place where people can learn the history of those neighborhoods and where the creators of Stuck will perform a forum theater. Once the festival begins in earnest, the Pop-Up Village will move to the New Haven Green where it will serve well as a means to attract attention and inspire participation in the festival.
Made of steel with lots of texture built in, the architectural invention is literally wired for sound, something that will come in handy during the festival. Festival Executive Director Mary Lou Aleskie explains that the students approached her in advance of last year’s festival saying they wanted to design an iconic building that would attract attention. “They did one of the most fantastic structures,” Aleskie says. “It was very successful.” When they came back this year wanting to do something else, it was easy for her to give them the go-ahead. She’s glad she did. “Once again, it’s fantastic,” Aleskie says. — L.F.
Hamden Area Cooperative Educational Services (ACES), Innovators in Education Area Cooperative Educational Services (ACES), Innovators in Education Area Cooperative Educational Services (ACES) is the Regional Educational Service Center for the twenty-five school districts in south central Connecticut. ACES exists to improve public education through innovative, high-quality, cost-effective programs and services. ACES schools include the Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven, Wintergreen Interdistrict Magnet School in Hamden, and Thomas Edison Middle School in Meriden. ACES programs and services range from early childhood services to career development for multi-challenged adults. For additional information, visit www.aces.org.
Forrester Dental Cosmetic & Restorative Dentistry Dr. Forrester is inviting and welcoming new and current clients who want to achieve a dazzling smile with the newest technologies and innovative procedures including cosmetic dental makeovers, porcelain veneers, implants, tooth bonding and Zoom whitening. Contact us today and let us give you a beautiful, healthy smile. 2319 Whitney Avenue, Hamden (203) 248-7900 • www.forresterdental.com
T.M. BYXBEE COMPANY, P.C., CPA’S T.M. Byxbee Company was established in 1919 on the principles of its founder, Theodore M. Byxbee, supervising IRS agent for New England. Today, from our convenient location in Hamden, CT, Byxbee Company services a large and diverse client base. We offer traditional accounting and tax services and also provide a host of more specialized and sophisticated services including computer support and training, wealth transfer planning, and assistance with the purchases and sales of businesses. Byxbee emphasizes quality of product, reasonable professional fees, timeliness and continuity of personnel. 2319 Whitney Avenue, Hamden, CT 06518 (203) 281-4933 www.byxbee.com new haven
29
Stuck Elevator June 20-29, post-performance discussion June 23
When an Asian immigrant finds himself trapped in an elevator for 81 hours, afraid to call out for help for fear of deportation, his story gets the attention of those concerned with immigration reform. In this case, it was composer Byron Au Yong and playwright Aaron Jafferis who took the true story of the Chinese food
30 June/July 2013
delivery man and turned it into a musical theater production called Stuck Elevator. “There are so many interesting aspects,” says Mary Lou Aleskie, the festival’s executive director. “The author and the composer were compelled by this story. Given that immigration reform is so prevalent in our society we had an opportunity. New Haven is a progressive city on this topic.” Calling Stuck Elevator a beautiful, poignant, human and inspiring work, Aleskie praises local product Jafferis and Au Yong, the son of Chinese immigrants, for putting a human face on the topic. Jafferis, who hails from New Haven, has written numerous hip-hop musicals,
including, Kingdom, How To Break, Blood Magic, Shakespeare: The Remix and No Lie. He can often be found teaching poetry throughout the city. Au Yong, who composes songs for voices with Asian, European and handmade instruments, is originally from the Pacific northwest where his inspiration was sparked by the natural beauty of mountains and streams. He aims to connect people with places. In addition to performances from June 2029 at Long Wharf Theater’s Stage II, Stuck Elevator will be the subject of an Ideas talk, also at LWT. Tickets for the production are $55 and $35. The talk is free. L.F.
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Wooster Square New Haven, CT 06511 www.grlandrealtors.com
& Realtors, LLC
203 781-0000 Gena Lockery
New Haven- Charming 1920’s Bungalow with natural woodwork, living room and formal dining room, eat in kitchen, 1st floor bedroom /study, 2nd fl master bedroom with bath and skylight, sunny yard with wooden shed house, quiet cul-de-sac, minutes to downtown. 100,000. Jeff x 210
2. New Haven- Well kept Ranch in turn key condition with hardwood floors, new 6 panel doors, new windows, fire place, partially finished LL, great out door space with hot tub, above ground pool and 2 level deck. New roof and mechanicals. 159,000 Diana x 208
New Haven- Hotchkiss on the Square, only 2 luxury condos left across from Historic Wooster Square, brand new units combined with new kitchens and baths with original details, Carriage house unit with loft and Garden Level Ranch units available. Laundry, parking and central air. 299,900. to 524,900. Gena x 203
Cromwell- Fox Meadows, large 3 bedroom end unit condo with 2 car garage and fire place, new gas stove and refrig, front entrance over looks wooded area for privacy, lower level is partial finished for den or office, 2.1 baths, pool. 169,900. Gena x 203
East Haven- Four Beaches, Beautiful views of Long Island Sound from this 2 bed Ranch unit with new hardwood floors and tile, new windows and slider, crown molding, wains coating, well maintained baths, gas fire place, new window treatments, walk in closets, covered parking and beach with sunset views! 147,900. Gena x 203
East Haven- Victoria Beach, Beautiful end unit wit garage, updated kitchen cabinets, corian counters, stainless steel appliances, front load w/d, half bath with vessel sink, olive pit colored floors, master bath with limestone shower, new windows and slider to patio with views of Long Island Sound. 179,900 Gena x 203
New Haven- Willis Barnes House, circa 1844, overlooks the Quinnipiac River in the Quinnipiac River Historic District has been transformed into a multi family with 2 contemporary town house units, cathedral ceilings, loft, 4 non working fire places, Yale Home Buyers Program. 235,000. Jeff x 210
West Haven - Lovely one owner Brick Ranch style home has been very well cared for in Painters Park area, central air, loads of cabinets and storage space, beautiful screened in porch with Long Island Sound views. 239,000. Beth x 202
New Haven - Waterviews from this charming Colonial, airy bright home steps from the Quinnipiac River, recently renovated with beautiful wood floors, open kitchen , enormous all purpose room in lower level, nice yard, architecturally unique home in Yale home buyers area. 239,900. Jeff x 210
.New Haven - Charming Colonial in Fair Haven Heights, sunny and bright first floor with living room, 4th bed and full bath, 2 staircases, 2nd fl with 3 beds and new full bath, nicely updated with hardwood floors, stain glass windows, great yard with blue stone patio and bocce court, driveway and views. 239,900. Gena x 203
New Haven- Exceptional condo in 1871 French 2nd Empire Brownstone directly across from Historic Wooster Square, Superb details, new baths, updated kitchen, give the perfect blend of modern amenities combined with glorious architecture, high ceilings, fire place, 3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, open floor plan. 289,900. Gena x 203
New Haven - Edwards Abbey, Fantastic East Rock condo, nicely updated kitchen and baths, new hardwood floors and paint, 2 master bedroom suites, open living room/ dining room, full basement with laundry. On Yale shuttle orange line. 399,900. Gena x 203
Monroe- well maintained 1 owner Colonial, at the end of cul-de-sac bordering Jones Family Farm, 2 family rooms on the first floor, eat in kitchen, formal dining room with French Doors to sunroom with cathedral ceiling, 4 generous bedrooms, desks. 425,000. Jeff x 210
New Haven- Wonderful charming 3 family home in East Rock, large flats with 3 bedrooms, natural woodwork, fire places, side porch, high ceilings, lots of sunlight, beautiful views, new roof and mechanicals, driveway, basement with laundry and storage. Fantastic income. 649,900. Gena x 203
East Haven- Shell Beach, direct views of Long Island Sound from your deck, living room, dining room and master bedroom, updated kitchen with SS appliances and granite counters, living room with fire place, master with deck and walk in closet, 2.1 baths, garage, gated complex with pool and private beach. 429,900. Gena x 203
New Haven- Victorian, pretty home with lots of potential, living room with bay window, formal dining room opens to kitchen, 2 beds and bath on 2nd floor, master bed suite on 3rd, long yard with deck, minutes to downtown. 159,000. Jeff x 210
Hamden- 1926 George H. Grey home, later to be Paier school of Art, a stone Tudor with magnificent roof lines has been restored and updated with high end luxury amenities is a mini estate with in ground pool at the end of a cul-de-sac with in the Yale Prospect Hill area. Over 9,000 sq ft with 7 bedrooms and 10 baths, exposed beam ceiling conservatory, library and so much more.... 2,200,000. Gena x 203
New Haven - Wooster Square, 3 family Brick home with lots of character, front porch and yard, 3 updated apartments all rented with hardwood, new kitchen and bath, fireplaces, new appliances, bonus room on 3rd floor for office or studio, laundry. 459,900. Gena x 203
& Realtors, LLC Wooster Square New Haven, CT 06511 www.grlandrealtors.com
new haven
31
A Work in the
Woods
The living space uses plate glass to frame a fireplace, veneered plywood to create indirect lighting on the ceiling, and the white walls that allow artful furniture to fully express their presence.
Woods
A young family remakes a ‘60s Woodbridge ranch house into something extraordinary
By Duo Dckinson Photos: by Anthony DeCarlo
Woods
ATH OME We all have to live somewhere, but families typically demand more of their homes than do singletons or emptynesters. Matthew and Laura Stansel discovered that creating a family and a home simultaneously (as most families do) can have a lot of unexpected realities. When they married in 2003, their careers were already established, and the focus became creating a home that could nurture children. They found a classic Westville house, were blessed to have a daughter a couple of years later. Then, four years later, twins arrived. That was in 2008, and despite the fact that the housing market was in full juggernaut mode, the Stansels knew that the tripling of their offspring called into question just how they would live for the duration of their child-rearing years. Today an information security analyst for the Yale New Haven Health System, Matthew had grown up in Woodbridge in a notable home. “At age seven, my family moved into the Stern House in Woodbridge — designed by Charles Moore in 1970 during his tenure as dean of the Yale School of Architecture,” he recounts. “I loved the house from the outset: full of light, multiple intermingled levels connected by flowing stairs, long, converging hallways — reminiscent of an M.C. Escher drawing. “There were many adventures to be had as a young boy in this house,” Matthew Stansel adds. “No doubt living this contemporary home had a major impact on my aesthetic during these formative years.”
Matt and Laura Stansel with family, art and light in their new Woodbridge home.
Fortuitously for their marriage, Laura Stansel is her husband’s aesthetic soulmate. “I have always loved contemporary architecture,” she says. “Growing up in Trumbull in the 1970s and ‘80s there was a boom of new contemporary homes built. I admired the feeling of space, the connection with the outdoors and the minimalism.” It’s self-evident to this couple that a home has an abiding impact on the children who grow up there. Certainly for Matthew Stansel, a modern home cemented his perspective on what “home” meant. “I wanted to combine the notions and themes I enjoyed as a boy,” he explains. After a period of house-hunting what they found was a classically undervalued property in Woodbridge. “Contemporary” houses in many New England communities command a smaller market than their “traditional” counterparts, and even in the gushing market of 2008 a 1960s “contemporary ranch” nicely set on a leafy Woodbridge lot was available at an affordable cost. So they bought it, moved in and, one month later, Laura gave birth to twins. A couple of years of upbringing revealed that one of the twins had a genetic metabolic disorder that fundamentally
impacted their vision of what shape their new home should ultimately assume. “We decided we would be spending most of our family time at home as travel is quite difficult,” she says. “We wanted the house to be an inspiration for the children. We needed an environment that would be both stimulating and safe.” Beyond these new requirements, all work done had to reflect the vision that made them purchase the home in the first place — a modern nest in the woods. The house sat at the top of a modest rise, set high enough to require access up a flight of stairs to get to the living floor from the level of the driveway/garage access, but also to capture sunlight and summer breezes. Although the home as they found it had open spaces, skylights, strip windows and the clean lines that made it fit a Realtor’s “contemporary” designation, the home’s 2,500 square feet was clearly inadequate for a family of five growing beyond the baby-raising years. Given the house, their family, their site and their sensibilities, the Stansels knew that a complete renovation and additional square-footage needed to be part of their master plan. Of course, what any good “Modern-ization” needs is a talented architect, so the Stansels set
out to find one who had Modernist street cred — but found much more than that. Jeff Kaufman is the principal of JMKA architects, with offices in Westport and Greenwich. He’s won awards for his work — but more importantly, he won the devotion of the Stansels. “Working with Jeff Kaufman was an amazing experience,” sys Laura Stansel. “Right from our initial meeting, we really felt he understood our point of view.” But architects need to know a client’s point of view if their designs are going to work beyond the visual. So the Stansels set about articulating their fondest dreams with a simple list that included ample glass walls, minimal exterior maintenance, a fireplace surrounded by glass, a sewing/music room and a workshop for Matthew.
More than an overarching aesthetic of Modernism as the glue that bound these disparate desires were several imperatives. First, one organizing and architectural theme was getting energy and light with south-facing windows featuring deep overhangs to prevent overheating.
SUMMER IS HERE AND THE HOUSING MARKET IS IN FULL GEAR!
Jack Hill, Realtor 203.675.3942 jhill@seabury.com
Serving the real estate needs of Greater New Haven, Yale & Shoreline since 1926 203.562.1220 • seaburyhill.com sting New Li
326 McKINLEY AVE, WESTVILLE, NH Grand living on sought after McKinley Avenue! Gracious 5 BR, 3.5 Bath, 3240 sq ft Center Hall Colonial w/well proportion, light filled rms. Half acre corner lot. New roof & newer kit & mechanicals. Lovely gardens. 3 car det gar. $499,900 Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328 d
Reduce
15 ORANGE STREET, #216, NH - Exciting Downtown NH 1 BR loft style condo loaded w/architectural details. High ceilings. Exposed brick walls. Wood beams. Restored original HW flrs. Remodeled kit w/SS steel appliances & granite counters. New heating system. Off St pkg space. $229,000 Jack Hill 203-675-3942 sting New Li
324 CONCORD STREET, MORRIS COVE, NH Updated 3 BR, 3 Bath Split Lvl in Morris Cove. A short stroll to LI Sound & Pardee Park. Remod. Ktch w/new granite counters & stainless steel GE appls. Open Flr Plan w/ HW flrs & central-air. Family Rm. $10,000 Reduction in price to $258,500. Cathy Conlin 203-843-1561
Cheryl Szczarba, Realtor 203.996.8328 cszczarba@yahoo.com sting New Li
rice New P
194 FOUNTAIN ST, WESTVILLE, NH - Charming 1918, 5 BR, 3 Bath Colonial w/double LR w/natural woodwork, pocket doors, decorative crown molding & refin wood flrs. Remod Kit w/ SS appliances. A/C. New windows. Fin basmt. .37 Ac lot. 2 Car garage. $329,000 Call Jack Hill 203-685-3942
95 AUDUBON STREET, #231, NH - New York style 2 BR, 2 Bath condo in the heart of the Art District. One level living w/no stairs. Elevator to garage. Beautifully updated Kit & Baths. Private & quiet setting overlooking Lincoln Way & Audubon courtyd. 24 HR security. A great city home! $519,000. Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
sting New Li
95 AUDUBON ST. # 103, “AUDUBON COURT”, NH 5 Room, 2 BR, 2 Bath condo in heart of Arts District, Yale & Dtown. Move right in. Ranch style unit overlooking Audubon St. HW flrs. Remod., Kitchen & Baths. Laundry in unit. Garage pkg. 24 HR security. You’ll love living in New Haven! $429,900 Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
138 HALLOCK AVE, NEW HAVEN - Stately brick investment property on corner lot with 6 apartment units. Separate utilities. CIrcuit breaker boxes & washer/dryer hook ups in each unit. Off street parking for at least 6 cars. $429,000 Call Jack Hill at 203-675-3942
550 Prospect Street #14, NH - Wonderful updates throughout this 2 bedroom condo. Family room and bonus room in finished basement. Hardwood floors. Laundry. Parking. On Yale bus line. Updated kitchen and baths and much more! All for only $229,000. Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
324 SAINT JOHN STREET, #3, NH - Historic 1804 Wooster Square Townhs condo. Newly renovated. New Kitchen. Large LR w/high ceilings, fireplace, original wood flrs & brand new 1.5 Baths. Central air. Washer/ Dryer in unit. Original widow’s walk included in unit. Off Street pkg for 2 cars. $259,000 John Hill 203-675-3942
21 ORANGE ST, #215, “TRADERS BLOCK”, NH Sophisticated downtown living at its best! Modern loft style studio w/ high ceilings, exposed wood beams & wonderful light. Renovated Bath. Spacious Kit with breakfast island. Off St parking. Walk everywhere! $169,000 Call Jack Hill @ 203-675-3942
305 TODD STREET, TRAILSIDE VILLAGE, HAMDEN Fabulous 2 BR, 2 Bath Ranch style condo in 55+ community with views of Sleeping Giant. Full basement. Garage. Unit only 5 years old! $299,900 Call Cheryl Szczarba at 203-996-8328
d
Reduce
95 AUDUBON STREET, #328, NH New York style living at its best! 5 Rm, 2 BR, 2 1/2 Bath Handsome Townhs condo at Audubon Court overlooking gated courtyard in Arts District. Fireplace, central-air, lndry & plenty of closet space. 24 Hr security. Garage pkg. Walk everywhere! $299,999 Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
sting New Li
3D HUGHES PLACE, “TOWNHOUSES ON THE SQ”, #H-5, NH Wonderful Wooster Square, 4 room, 1 BR condo just steps from the park. Pet friendly. Off Street pkg. Laundry in unit. Remodeled Kit. Private patio. You’ll love the low monthly fees! Walk to downtown, pizza and more... $224,900 Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
81CHURCH ST, #5E & #2W,“JOHNSON SIMONS”,NH Two dramatic architect designed NY style lofts in the heart of Downtown w/45 ft ceilings, broad skylights, exposed brick walls, sleek modern Kits w/SS appliances, fp, A/C & one w/deck with views of city & 1200 sf of added space to develop. $525,000 & $629,000 Jack Hill 203-675-3942
12 ACADEMY ST, #2A, NEW HAVEN - Overlook historic Wooster Square and it’s famed cherry blossoms! 2 BR, 2 Bath condo w/ lovely details, remodeled Kit, marble baths, laundry, central-air & storage. $349,900 Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.
65 WASHINGTON AVENUE, SEYMOUR - Beautifully maintained 4 BR, 2.1 bath home with potential in law suite. Large rooms. Elegant DR w/crystal chandelier. Eat-in Kit. 3rd flr w/full bath & bonus rooms. Lots of light. Deck overlooking lovely fenced yard. Close to everything! $324,900 Cheryl Szczarba 203-996--8328
sting New Li
44 TEMPLE COURT, NH - Elegant, light filled 2 BR, 2.5 Bath Townhs at sought-after Whitney Grove. 3rd Floor open loft w/ BR nook and large deck w/awning & great city views. Secure garage pkg.Walk to Yale & Downtown. $647,900 Call Cheryl Szczarba at 203-996-8328
271 GREENE STREET, # G-13, NH - Move right into this lovely updated 1 Bedroom condo facing Wooster Square Park. Low monthly fees! Updated Kitchen & Bath. Hardwood floors. Floor to ceiling windows. Laundry. Off St Pkg. Pet friendly. Nothing to do, but enjoy New Haven! $244,900 Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
Residential Sales • Investment Properties Buyer Representation • Rentals
34 ROOSEVELT ST, HAMDEN - Cute as a button 6 rm, 3 BR Cape on nice corner lot. Large renovated eat-in Kit w/new appliances & large center island. Spacious formal LR & DR. First Flr MBR. Newer roof & updated electrical. Central air! $189,000 call Jack Hill 203-675-3942
100 YORK ST, #7O, #12G & 10A, “UNIVERSITY TOWERS”, NH - Enjoy views of Yale, dtown, NH harbor from 12th flr studio ($45,900), remodeled 2 BR, 2 Bath on 7th flr ($99,900) & 1 BR on 10th flr (NEW-$54,900). 24 HR Security. Cash only! No Pets, No investors Walk to Yale, hospitals...Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328
233 Wooster Street, New Haven, CT
203.562.1220
seaburyhill.com • seaburyhillrentals.com
sell buy rent
The kitchen shows how stock Ikea cabinetry, augmented by expressive hardware and custom solid-surface countertops, can obviate any sense of limitations imposed by a $13,000 budget.
The bones of the original home remain in the center lower floor of this entry view - the metal clad bay focuses attention to the entry below - which leads to the main occupied floor one flight up., and strutted columns expressively support new second floor space.
36 June/July 2013
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Second was cantilevering new space where necessary to minimize soil disturbance. Last and most compelling was the romantic vision of living in a tree house. But functionally the special needs put upon siblings when one of them is a “special needs” child created a whole host of requirements, including running space and each child’s bedroom being its own “place”— with distinctive characteristics.
The magic of skylighting and super graphic tiling turn an interior bath into a zestily cool place.
This weighty agenda required a great deal of design and construction — a full year of building, in fact — that was only recently completed. Architect Kaufman preserved several of the original home’s bones: the stairway, the first-floor structure, the existing lower level slab and foundation and a side deck. Other than these remnants, much of what is presented in these photographs represents new construction. Most dramatic to those who drive onto the site is a new second-floor angled frontispiece of children’s bedrooms and bath — complete with metal-clad “signet” bay — cantilevered beyond the cantilevered
Worldwide Purveyors of Unique Stones Call to make an appointment to visit our showroom located at
KITCHEN STUDIO at WEST HAVEN LUMBER 752 Washington Ave, West Haven 203.933.1641, sales@whlumber.com M-F 8 am-4 pm & Sat 8 am-12 pm
99-107 Shelton Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut
(203) 782-3544 www.elemarnewengland.com
new haven
37
Height, light and color as spice make a modern space sing — even for an informal eating area. Note the clean built-in banquette seating and sculptural light fixtures.
second-floor mass. That focal point signals entry on the outside from the existing driveway, but also acts as an interior feature for one of the specialized children’s rooms. As with all good Modern homes, rigorous consistency of materials and detailing unify the home’s exterior. New full glass walls in living spaces and bedrooms make the trees part of the home’s interior. Expressed timber column/ struts draw attention to the new overhanging construction. Similarly, the new roof features open eaves with angle-cut rafter tails and solid wood undersides. Wood decks, grey horizontal siding and complementary metal shingled bays are all “expressed” in proud shapes and subordinate recesses filled with glass weave together a house of distilled shapes. The front door nestles under the angled bar of children’s bedrooms and has a double-height, toplit shaft on the way to the stairs that lead up to the living level. The rest of the lower level houses garage bays, Matthew’s shop, the music room, a playroom for the kids, laundry and mechanical space. The second floor became an “H” in plan, where the angled kid’s wing faces the driveway, and the parent’s master suite wing addresses the back view, with the stair, living, dining and kitchen
38 June/July 2013
amidships - their spaces fully extended by social decks. The aesthetic is modern and lofted — glass and wire rails, white walls, flat stock trim, beautiful oak floors — the unified sweep of a clean Modernist vision. All projects have budgets, of course. The Stansels’ zesty kitchen is a $13,000 assemblage of Ikea cabinetry and a zoomy sink from their old Westville home. Bathrooms feature graphic tile patterns. Expressive art — mostly created by local artists — and boldly rendered furniture make a potentially stark interior as alive and vibrant as the family who calls this space home. A veneered dropped ceiling panel allows for indirect lighting, and a fireplace and glass wall lend balance to this high-ceilinged space. The interior employs recesses built into walls as well as simple millwork and strategic skylights to complement the predominance of vaulted ceilings. But this artful interior has a not-sohidden agenda — facilitating and accommodating child’s play. Explains Laura Stansel: “We have two long wide hallways that serve as play areas for relay races, building forts or just lying in the sunshine and reading books.”
Good design requires a good site as its picture frame, and the mature second-growth forest that surrounds this Woodbridge property is verdant and full. Good design also needs clients with a clear vision of what the house wants to be at the end of the day — and the Stansels provided clear direction flowing from sharpedged needs. Finally, good design comes from a visionary designer who sees the limits and possibilities inherent in context and weaves a final product that is at once invigorating yet seemingly effortless. This home manifest all these possibilities. “I feel we truly achieved a synthesis of our aesthetic values and seamless integration with the property and its surroundings,” says Matthew Stansel. “We wanted to create a unique, inviting space for our family and friends to enjoy — not separate from the land but part of it, fully embracing the natural world around it.” This is where a seven-year-old and four-yearold twins can play, learn and grow. And their early-40s parents can put aside the “what-ifs” and “if-onlys” that constrain construction in so many instances. Design can find a place for a family, as it did here. Y
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
® ®
a local, full-service company with national and international connections www.hpearce.com BRANFORD
EAST HAVEN
GUILFORD
GUILFORD
22 SUNSET HILL DRIVE $419,000 2 bedroom Ranch on 1.3 acres, hardwood ÀRRUV UHFHQWO\ UHQRYDWHG ZLWK QHZ IXUQDFH ZDWHU KHDWHU DLU FRPSUHVVRU
124 FRANK STREET $222,000 5HPRGHOHG EHGURRP &DSH VW ÀRRU bedroom, corner lot, fenced-in yard, walk to Main Street shopping.
458 DURHAM ROAD $375,000 4 bedroom Cape with river frontage, open ÀRRU SODQ UHPRGHOHG NLWFKHQ Z JUDQLWH custom cabinets, close to town.
105 FLAT IRON ROAD $319,000 Walk to neighborhood beach from this charming Country Cape, 4 bedrooms, ¿UHSODFH IDPLO\ URRP JDV KHDW FHQWUDO air.
Art Corda 860.669.4617 x210 acorda@hpearce.com
3K\OOLV 'DYLG [ pryan@hpearce.com dmayhew@hpearce.com
Dorothy Engstrom 203.453.2737 x806 dengstrom@hpearce.com
Debbie Cangiano 203.453.2737 x816 dcangiano@hpearce.com
GUILFORD
HADDAM
HAMDEN
NEW HAVEN
277 LANDONS WAY $729,000 Beautiful 4 bedroom Colonial with bonus room in sought after subdivision south of Route 1.
682 CANDLEWOOD HILL RD $389,900 Spectacular Split Level home. 4 BRs, 2 %$V 5HPRGHOHG NLWFKHQ Z JUDQLWH 2SHQ ÀRRU SODQ /LYLQJ URRP Z ¿UHSODFH 0DVWHU %5 Z ZDON LQ FORVHW DFUHV JUHDW \DUG Z NRL SRQG
,9(6 675((7 %HDXWLIXO %5 %$ &RORQLDO *RUJHRXV SULYDWH /DUJH IDPLO\ UP GLQLQJ UP RI¿FH NLW Z JUDQLWH VXE]HUR %ULFN SDWLR LQ JURXQG SRRO Z IXOO %$ ,QFO DGMRLQLQJ DF ORW Z EDUQ $GG¶O DF ORW DYDLODEOH
854 QUINNIPIAC AVE #7 $349,000 Waterviews! 3 Bedroom. Nearly 2400 SF FRQGR +DUGZRRG ÀRRUV FRRNV NLWFKHQ easy access to highways, Yale and downtown.
Sue Popplewell 203.453.2737 x813 spopplewell@hpearce.com
Vin Masotta 203.287.1626 x527 vmasotta@hpearce.com
Eileen Smith 203.287.1626 x514 esmith@hpearce.com
'L'L 2OLYLD [ urbanspecialists@hpearce.com
NEW HAVEN
NEW HAVEN
NEW HAVEN
SOUTHINGTON
150 HARBOUR CLOSE STARTING AT $299,900 Breakwater Condos! Building #2 now available. Luxury 2 bedroom. Waterfront units. Brand new! Spacious. Views of New Haven Harbor.
248 OGDEN STREET $1,150,000 2JGHQ 6W¶V VW KRPH %XLOW LQ Z ¶V additions. Grand entry opens to formal DR Z )3 IRUPDO /5 Z )3 QG ÀU %'5 VXLWHV UG ÀU Z DGG¶O %5V %DWK /DQGVFDSHG grounds. Bright, elegant, comfortable.
452 HUMPHREY STREET $525,000 5DUH VLQJOH IDPLO\ DWWDFKHG KRPH Z HOHJDQW formal rooms, hi ceilings, original details +: Ã&#x20AC;RRUV *UHDW QDWXUDO OLJKW /DUJH SULYDWH IHQFHG LQ \DUG 6KRUW ZDON WR <DOH downtown. End unit.
807 WOODRUFF STREET $299,900 Excellent condition 3 bedroom Ranch. /DUJH OHYHO DFUH ORW Z JUHDW SDWLR EHDXWLIXO YLHZV ¿UHSODFHV FDU JDUDJH VHDVRQ VXQURRP FHQWUDO DLU +: Ã&#x20AC;RRUV
Michael Stroud 203.776.1899 x714 mstroud@hpearce.com
5D\ :RMWHN [ info@edgehillrealtors.com
5D\ :RMWHN [ info@edgehillrealtors.com
Linda Teixeira-Ohr 203.287.1626 x507 lteixeira-ohr@hpearce.com
new haven
39
These days kite-flying isn’t just for kids (or even just for spring)
Having The World on a String G
rasping the handles of his quad-line kite, Karl Berg leans against the wind and jerks the kite toward the sky in one swift maneuver. The Revolution Kite, shaped like a bowtie, spirals in the grey sky effortlessly. A skilled competitor, Berg controls the kite like a jockey pilots his horse. The lines release and the kite takes a sudden 90-degree downward plunge, righting itself just inches above the grass. “When you understand the wind, you can make your kite do anything you want it to do,” Berg explains. An agile stunt flier for 15 years, Berg, of Meriden, travels to different conventions and competitions flying the quad line Revolution Kite, an airfoil with four lines attached to it, and his signature 12-stack Color Master, which
has 12 individual kites that fly as one. “When you’re competing, there’s nothing like it,” Berg says. “You incorporate music and maneuvers and difficult combinations to show your skills.” While Berg is one of the few competing members in the region, ConnectiKITERS, a regional kite-flying club, counts about 100 kiting enthusiasts among its membership. Describing itself as “an unofficial, intentionally disorganized group of people who, as demonstrated by their membership in AKA [American Kitefliers Association] have a passion for kiting in one or another of all of its aspects...and who see an advantage in meeting, flying kites, socializing and fostering involvement in the fun of flying kites,” ConnectiKITERS was formed in the spring of 1987 by Vic and Bernie Walton of Ansonia. Eventually becoming a formal affiliate of
By Makayla Silva
the American Kitefliers Association, ConnectiKITERS remains true to its motto, “Just for the Fun of It,” through organizing monthly non-competitive familyoriented meet-ups across the state. Membership to the most active New England kite club is $15 per year for the entire family. For 85-year-old Hamden resident Richard Bromley, kite flying is a timeless hobby. “I’ve been flying kites for — oh, let’s say 80 years,” says Bromley. “The excitement of getting a kite up in the air and watching it fly — it never goes away.”
Upcoming KITERS • Brenton Point Fly — The 193rd annual Newport Kite Festival takes place July 14 in Newport, R.I.
• The Harkness Day Fly takes place September 8 at Harkness State Park in Waterford.
• ConnectiKITERS Night Fly is held July 20 at Savin Rock in West Haven.
• On October 13 the One Sky, One World Fly is held at Savin Rock in West Haven
• Pigs Can Fly (not literally) takes place August 4 at Colt Park in Bristol, RI
• The 2013 Connecticut kiting season comes to a close November 10 with the annual Veterans Day Fly at Hammonasset State Park in Madison.
• Harkness State Park in Waterford is the site of the annual Christmas in August event August 11. • The annual ConnectiKITERS Night Fly is held August 17 at Savin Rock in West Haven.
Sacred Heart Academy S TR O NG VALUE S . S TR O NG ACADE MICS . STRONG LEA DERSHIP
OPEN HOUSE Sunday, October 20 from 1 to 3 p.m.
ENTRANCE EXAM Saturday, November 2 from 8 a.m. to Noon
Impelled by Christ’s Love
For more information on these or other kite-flying events visit: ConnectiKITERS. blogspot.com.
Founded in 1946, Sacred Heart Academy is an independent, Catholic preparatory day school for qualified young women in grades nine through twelve.
265 Benham Street, Hamden CT | 203.288.2309 sacredhearthamden.org
Center Podiatry Foot Pain Specialists
Foot Pain Emergencies Seen Immediately Featuring Shockwave Therapy for Chronic Heel Pain
Dr. Gary N. Grippo Board Certified Foot Surgeon Bone & Joint Specialist
Dr. Sean Lazarus Sports Injuries-Biomechanics Pediatric Footcare
www.centerpodiatry.com
800-676-3668 Guilford, East Haven, Higganum, Orange, Clinton Saturday Appointments Available
Hamden’s Richard Bromley figures he’s been flying kites for ‘Oh — let’s say 80 years.’ Photo: Lisa Wilder
Like Bromley, longtime ConnectiKITERS Gary and Maggie Engvall of Cranston, R.I. have shared a common love for kite flying that has led them up and down the East Coast teaching kitemaking workshops and judging competitions. “Gary has loved flying kites for his entire life,” says Maggie Engvall of her husband. “He brought me into it.” She says Gary would pick up little kites at drugstores, often found stocked on the shelves in March and April, the universal kite season, and would fly in his spare time. But in the late 1980s, Maggie Engvall said, they stumbled upon a Northampton, Mass. kiteflying store, World on a String, and that changed everything. “I walked around and around, like a kid in a candy store,” Gary Engvall recalls. “Some people are thrifty, but I am cheap. I did not buy a kite; I bought a kitemaking book.” Gary Engvall has judged kitemaking at a national level three times, was a flight judge for 15 years 42 June/July 2013
for the annual Smithsonian Institution Kite Festival (now known as the Cherry Blossom Kite Festival) and won the Rokkaku (Kite) Battle at the Smithsonian twice with a kite he created. According to Engvall, the Rokkaku (Kite) Battle includes about 30 teams gathered on the field with their kites. They launch their kites into the air and then deliberately try to tangle lines with their opponents. A tangle can cut the string of the other kite. If a string is severed, or if the kite touches the ground, the competitor is eliminated and the last kite in the sky wins. “My philosophy about kites is similar to my philosophy about computers: If you can’t make one from scratch, you don’t own it; it owns you,” Engvall says. “People ask me all the time how I got in to kites. My glib answer is that I never got out. Started as a kid, thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of it, and never quit.” Though Maggie Engvall came to kite flying later in life, she has become the regional director for the ASA as well as the chief judge at league competition events up and down the East Coast.
Following many years of learning the ins and outs of competition and the mechanics of the modern kiting landscape, Maggie Engvall says it takes knowledge of the wind and control of the kite to make a good flier. “You need to know where it’s going and be able to handle the kite — whether it’s dual or quad line,” she notes. “You’ve got to be able to take off and to land your kite. There’s a lot to it.” The husband-and-wife team fly large kites, generally considered to be anything in excess of 252 square feet. “We have a Peter Lynn Octopus Kite that is 18 feet wide and 88 feet long,” says Gary Engvall. “We have a Peter Lynn Manta Ray that is 35 feet wide and 100 feet long.” Ideally, says Maggie Engvall, winds between four and 18 mph, a 400-by-400-foot open field void of trees, power lines, buildings and light posts make NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
manufactured out of China.
for perfect kite-flying conditions. Nevertheless, she adds, speed, direction and pressure can change like the — well, like the wind. “You never know what you’re going to get,” she notes. “Winds can change instantly. You’ve got to know what kite to fly and how to fly in little or no wind.” For the fledgling kite flier, Maggie Engvall suggests beginning with a delta-wing kite that’s balanced by a keel. Diamond-shaped kites, sled kites and snowflake kites are several other easy-to-fly starter kites, Engvall adds. Dave Olsen of Haddam Neck, a member of ConnectiKITERS for 15 years, says that the paper kites found in dime stores made popular in the Baby Boom era are still the best throwaway kites around. In those days of yore, ten cents for the kite and ten cents for the string made for an endlessly entertaining afternoon of soaring the sky. The Hi-Flier Kite Co. in Decatur, Ill. led the market for paper kites during the middle part of the 20th century, but is now a licensed brand
“My philosophy about kites is similar to my philosophy about computers: If you can’t make one from scratch, you don’t own it; it owns you.”
Olsen says these five-and-dime kites, unchanged from generations past, are perfect for an afternoon of kite flying. Like Gary Engvall, Olsen says he began flying kites such as these as a boy and simply never stopped. Olsen now competes in kite sports including kite buggying, kite landboarding and kite boarding, though he still flies the simple dime-store kites of yesteryear. “I’m from a little farm town with a lot of hayfields,” says Olden. “So we flew kites. And never stopped. “Why stop being a kid?” asks Olden rhetorically. “As soon as you start growing up you become old.” Whether a stack of 36 kites flying as one, a Rokkaku fighting kite or a traditional 25-cent diamond shape with a tail, kites of all shapes and sizes can be found swirling, soaring and hovering in the springtime and early-summer skies. Y
®
“KeepMeHome keeps me home where I belong.” KeepMeHome® helps you or your loved one stay at home or in their retirement community – with as little or as much help as needed. From cooking and cleaning to personal care, errand running, and appointment escorts, KeepMeHome can do it all. Be it an hour a day or live-in care, we can fit your individual needs. We’re dependable, responsive and very affordable.
www.keepmehome.com
Cooking Services
Housekeeping
Phone Assistance
Companionship
877-302-2323 A C A R E & C O M PA N I O N A G E N C Y
Transportation and more!
new haven
43
The School of Rock Student performers: Singer: Diego Ferreira Guitar: Rodrigo Galavis Drums: Will Hetherington
Photo: Ph P Pho h ho otto to: o: Ma o M Mariola arrio riiola la Gal G Galavis a av al aavi viis Pho ho oto to m man ma anipu an ip ip pu ullat laaattiion io o N Ne ew H Have avve ave av en m maga ag aga gaazzi g zin iin ine ne Photo manipulation New Haven magazine
By JOHN MORDECAI
A
re you ready to rock?!
No? Then get to school and learn how. Aspiring musicians and rock stars alike can now hone their chops and get the thrill of playing onstage in a band thanks to Madison’s new School of Rock. The fast-growing franchise takes in youngsters ages seven to 18 and offers them one-on44 June/July 2013
one instruction in the whole gamut of rock instrumentation, while also grouping them together into a modular band to rehearse and eventually perform some of rock’s classics. The School of Rock started in 1998 in Philadelphia as an after-school program, but gained momentum after the popularity of the 2003 Jack Black movie of the same name. It started franchising in 2005. The school’s latest location opened in Madison in late April by Courtney Gibbons of New Canaan, who was turned on to School of Rock after taking her children – son Bobby, 11, and nine-year-old daughter Riley — to that town’s location in lieu of traditional music lessons, and she says the results were powerful.
“They really wanted to learn their instrument and became passionate about music,” says Gibbons, who described herself as more music fan than actual practitioner. “Instead of pulling teeth to get your kids to practice their instrument, they were asking me for more. And they were so proud of themselves. Once you go to that first show it melts your heart when you see what it does for the children. There’s something magic about getting those kids up on stage.” Gibbons was at the time was longing to open her own business, and it was that magic that helped make up her mind. “I really wanted to do something where I personally feel like someone’s benefiting, and the kids are,” she says. “And I appreciate School of Rock from a marketing perspective — it’s such a NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
strong brand, it’s growing like crazy, and offers a service that’s good for people.”
Photo: Mariola Galavis
The new school opened in the converted 1844 Dr. Daniel Webb house on Main Street that now features a student lounge and rehearsal rooms on the ground floor, and many individual practice and instruction rooms upstairs that still feel like the bedrooms they once were. Gibbons says she wanted the place to maintain a house-like vibe that everyone would find comfortable enough to hang out in. The lounge itself has a retro vibe, the walls plastered with rock album covers. The upstairs area even displays an electric guitar smashed by Madison First Selectman Fillmore McPherson during the school’s grand opening event. This being a school of “rock,” there’s no mistaking that the titans of classic rock — the Who, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and the like — have the spotlight here. A quick look at the T-shirts donned by the youngsters that flocked to the school on its first official signup day April 27 illustrated that, in addition to a heavy dose of what seems to be the modern classics, Nirvana and Green Day among them. But Gibbons says there will be a wide range of music covered. “We’ll do some funk, a little jazz, and mix it up, too,” she explains. “It’s not just about one genre, it’s about music appreciation and teaching. Jazz fueled a lot of rock, so when we teach, we’ll talk about how one thing influences another.” The School of Rock’s approach is centered on performance. In each 12-week session, student musicians of varying degrees of proficiency can sign up for a performance program (the first and current one is British Invasion), which each week gives them one private lesson and one full-band rehearsal. The rock stars-in-training each sign up to play different songs based on their own skill level. At the end of the season, the revolving lineup takes the stage at a local venue. You could easily see a 17-year-old bass player with a 14-year-old drummer, and a 10-year-old guitarist, which Gibbons says keeps things interesting for the players. “The value here is bringing the kids together and putting them in group settings,” Gibbons says. “Now they have band members counting on them; when they’re called into the rehearsal room, they need to know their parts. So they learn their instrument, and they learn teamwork, accountability, and the confidence required to be able to perform.”
Madison First Selectman Fillmore McPherson smashes an acoustic guitar at a grand opening event at Madison’s new School of Rock. says the performance opportunity gives aspiring musicians a lot more than they’d get otherwise. “It’s going to give the kids an opportunity to showcase what they can do, as opposed to what you get out of just music lessons,” he says. “You can play on the edge of your bed, or you can play out live at a real gig, which is really important in getting that love of music.” Some of those kids did gain a stronger appreciation for music by going to the school. Michael Turk, 14, of Greenwich, went to the New Canaan school and was on hand for the Madison opening with friends Rodrigo Galavis, ten, and Diego Ferreira, 11, both of New Canaan. Turk played guitar for two years before joining the school a year ago, but since picked up drums and bass guitar. Galavis juggles drums, bass and guitar, and Ferreira started with guitar but took on bass duties at the school as well. “Before School of Rock I didn’t really like music that much, but now I love it so much — it opened my eyes to so many new bands I didn’t like before,” Turk says. Galavis shares similar sentiments. “I didn’t know that many bands other than the common ones you hear on the radio, but now I know a lot of bands and a lot of songs,” says Galavis. “Now if someone knows a song and I know a song, we can just jam out.” The three boys share a common link in their love of Led Zeppelin, though Galavis likewise gives a nod to Rush among his favorites. “My favorite part was having the concerts,” Ferreira adds. “It was very fun to play on stage and to play with all your friends.”
Guitar and keyboard instructor Pete Cornell, 27, is one of six teachers at School of Rock. He
Gibbons says plans to secure a venue for the school’s performances are in process, but she’d ideally like to have something on the shoreline and in New Haven. She adds that it was
proximity to the Elm City and its vibrant music scene that made the shoreline such an attractive place. The first performance will take place at Donahue’s in Madison, August 3rd and 4th. The Madison location is the fourth School of Rock in Connecticut; besides New Canaan, the school also has locations in Shelton and Fairfield. Nationwide the school has more than 100 locations in 31 states, with between 20 and 40 new locations slated to open in 2013, according to CNN Money, which ranks School of Rock among the five fastest-growing franchises in the U.S. The school also has locations in Canada, Mexico, Brazil and the Philippines. Adults don’t need to feel left out, either. The school also offers performance and instruction programs, or just rehearsal space for those who still carry the rock ‘n’ roll torch. “Sometimes you’ll get adults who already play but don’t have a venue and just want to get together with their friends for two hours on a Saturday,” Gibbons says. “Or we’ll put a performance program together and after 12 weeks get them up on stage at a local venue.” Gibbons says there will plenty more performance programs — she is already planning curricula centered on the music of Michael Jackson, the Beatles and Pink Floyd’s The Wall album for this fall, as well as five weeks of summer camps from the week of July 8th to the week of August 5th (week-long condensed versions of the performance program), as well as songwriting workshops, special guests and other events. But for now, it’s all about getting the stars of tomorrow ready to rock. Regardless of how well anyone can play his or her instrument, Gibbons wants just one thing for School of Rock’s students. “That they’re inspired.” Y new haven
45
Pigskin PARADE
Goodspeed’s surprisingly nuanced revival of a 1927 chestnut Good News, a musical comedy. Music and lyrics by Ray Henderson, B.G. DeSylva and Lew Brown. Book by Laurence Schwab, Frank Mandel and B.G. DeSylva. Adapted by Jeremy Desmon. Directed and choreographed by Vince Pesce, Ran, through June 22 at Goodspeed Opera House, 6 Main St., East Haddam. 860-873-8668, goodspeed.org.
By BROOKS APPELBAUM
W
alking into Goodspeed Musicals to review Good News, I first spied a scrim painted with an enormous, grimacing football player who seems about to run off the scrim and tackle the audience, with possibly fatal results. Good News
46 June/July 2013
not only revolves around college football, but around students, coaches and professors (with a couple of notable exceptions) who rank their priorities thusly: “No. 1: Football. No. 2: Girls. No. 3: Studying.” College football being off my radar entirely, the scrim was not an auspicious start. Oh, have a sense of humor, you say. The musical opened in 1927, and in the show, college football is just an excuse for young people to sing, dance, compete, couple and re-couple (in a most discreet 1927 sort of way). Good News is also an excuse for its song-writing team (B.G. DeSylva, Lew Brown and Ray Henderson) to pen more than a few indelible hits, including “Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries,” “Button Up Your Overcoat,” “Varsity Drag” and “The Best Things in Life are Free.” Well, by the time we made it to Scene 2, I was
’Keep Your Sunny Side Up’ is one of the musical numbers — and the prevailing philosophy — of Good News. PHOTOGRAPHS: Diane Sobolewski
hooked. We’ve already met our hero, the football jock Tom Marlowe (a suave but winningly unselfconscious Ross Lekites, with a lovely voice). And in the second scene we meet our heroine, Connie (the charming Chelsea Morgan Stock), an earnest astronomy student, and her mentor, Professor Kenyon (Beth Glover, who has some of the sharpest comic timing I’ve seen). Stock and Glover are both able to play shunned intellectuals at football-crazed Tait College without becoming nasty or sarcastic — a neat trick. The main plot revolves around a clash between Tom and Prof. Kenyon: he has failed an astronomy test, and the Dean has decreed that any player who fails a test forfeits the right to play football. Wouldn’t you know it: the crowning game of Tom’s senior year is only days away, and after the big win he’ll attend the AllAmerican Ball, where he is expected to propose to his college sweetheart, Pat Bingham (Lindsay O’Neil). Prof. Kenyon plays by the rules — of the college, that is. What to do? Pat (a planner extraordinaire, who designs the All-American Ball with the same fervor that she bestows on planning the future generations of her family tree) comes to the rescue: Her drab NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
little cousin Connie will tutor Tom so he can pass the test, follow through, and ensure Pat’s happily-ever-after. Of course, we are in for some unexpected twists, and between lots of singing, dancing, tutoring, stargazing and — believe it or not — soul-searching, as a very unexpected conclusion occurs for all the players, on the field and off. I note that Pat is one of the most difficult kinds of roles to play in musical comedy. Oddly enough, Billy Bigelow, from Carousel, comes to mind, despite the vast difference in the musicals and characters. Both Pat and Billy must create a mixture of emotions in the audience so that as much as we might like to, we can’t settle on one simple response. Pat must be unmistakably conventional, pushy and — at times — downright unkind, particularly to Connie. At the same time, we must feel some warmth toward her, even if this warmth is unconscious, in order for the ending to hit its mark. Bravo, then, to Lindsay O’Neil and to the show’s director and choreographer, Vince Pesce. Not
only does O’Neil nail Pat’s character (on the surface and deep below), but she also takes us on Pat’s inner journey, even as we’re unaware that we’re traveling. The first inkling that we might be mistaken in dismissing Pat comes in the lovely three-part ballad, “Lucky in Love,” sung by Pat, Connie and Tom, each having their own visions, and each vision conflicting with that of the others. In the play’s penultimate scene, Pat shows just how far she has come in her emotional evolution, and I was astonished to find tears in my eyes. Two subplots round out the story: the unlikely re-kindled romance between Coach Bill Johnson (an expert Mark Zimmerman) and Professor Kenyon; and the triangle between bad-girl Babe (Tessa Faye), her ex-boyfriend, Beef (marvelously funny and heartwarming, as portrayed by Myles J. McHale) and Babe’s new love-victim, Bobby Randall (Barry Shafrin). Zimmerman and Glover have perfect chemistry, whether they are at odds or stammering out their hopes for a new start. Unfortunately, the
chemistry between Faye and Shafrin feels forced. Faye must play a comic sexual predator, 1927-style (her signature song is “I Want To Be Bad,” sung as she pursues a terrified Bobby all over the stage). Yet director Pesce has emphasized “comic” and “predator” to the point where we lose sight of why men adore her so helplessly. At the very thought of having lost her, after all, Beef — huge and half-witted and out to pummel to death Babe’s next boyfriend — bursts into sobs, more than once. Shafrin dances with loose-limbed grace, but he needs to convey more of the sexual charm that drives Babe wild enough to pursue him for the entire course of a very long show. At nearly three hours’ running time, Good News is indeed leisurely. And although audiences had longer attention spans back in 1927, Pesce would have been wise to cut the show for contemporary theater-goers. However, the company’s energy mostly carries us, and the main characters enlarge our sense of the unexpected depth early musicals can achieve. Y
Visit CHROMA gallery, home to unique Gifts and Apparel Eve’s Apparel – fresh, fun clothing for all, visit us at www.evesapparel.net
Guilford
Creek Chic Designs – handcrafted jewelry & belt buckles, visit us at www.creekchic.com BSK design - fused glass jewelry, plates and sculpture, visit us at www.bskdesign.net Come in and see our ever-changing merchandise; something new each time. Open every day.• 20 C Church Street, Guilford 203.453.3111
Blue Moon Artisans Handcrafts Your vision fulfilled by Guerrera Landscaping LLC Blue Moon Artisans features Beautiful American Handcrafts, from more than
350 Artisans! Pottery, Jewelry, Simon Pearce Glass, Eucalyptus Stoneware, Garden Accessories, Vera Bradley and delicious Stonewall Kitchens Gourmet Foods. And .. don’t forget “Half Moon” on our upper level, where everything is 25 - 75% OFF everyday! Present this ad for a 25% discount on one full priced non-consignment item. Offer expires June 30, 2013. 50 York St, Guilford, CT (203) 453-5845
At Guerrera Landscaping we have more than 30 years of experience, we can design the ideal landscape and hardscape to fit your dream and budget. Today, more and more homeowners and businesses are realizing the value of landscaping. Not only will it increase your property’s value, it also provides a great area for family, friends or employees to enjoy. Call us to discuss any of your landscaping needs. mike@guerreralandscaping.com 164 Nut Plains Road, Guilford, CT 203-453-6693 - www.guerreralandscaping.com new haven
47
Barry Shafrin (Bobby) and Tessa Faye (Babe) play a romantic predator and predatee in Good News.
The GIANTS E
By MELISSA NICEFARO
OF Park Street Forty years after, Summer Cabaret returns to its roots 48 June/July 2013
ach summer for the past 40 years, theater students at Yale University are given an opportunity that not many others in their position receive: they produce, direct and act in a series of plays of their own choice. The Yale Summer Cabaret’s 2013 “Season of Giants” summer series kicked off May 31 at its 217 Park Street theater to a sold-out audience. Five different productions are slated and according to Associate Artistic Director Chris Bannow, and although it may seem like an exorbitant amount of pressure-filled work, it’s actually quite fun for the actors. The cabaret was started in 1974 when a group of students banded together and performed, in one summer season, 17 plays that included NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Molière, Stoppard, Wilde, Shakespeare, as well as then-Yale students Wendy Wasserstein and Christopher Durang. The 2013 Yale Cabaret’s Summer of Giants intends to embrace the spirit of those early years by offering an ambitious variety of different theatrical offerings written by some of the greatest playwrights of our time. All shows are performed, designed, staffed and produced by the summer ensemble. While the crew is rehearsing one show during the day, they’re performing another in the evening. “It reaches back to the roots of the cabaret, where ambition was the focus,” Bannow says. “We get to examine plays in a setting that’s fast-paced — the plays are pragmatic pillars of theater history. We can unlock new thinking for us and the audience. That’s what the theater school at Yale is training us to do.” This year’s team comprises eight actors who take turns performing and directing the plays. “When we’re not acting or directing, we’re the wait staff,” Bannow says, adding that the dinner menu changes often, incorporating the theme or culture of the performance. The season runs over the course of what Bannow calls “a fun-filled, colorful and exciting 12 weeks,” and gives Yale theater students the opportunity to direct and perform in productions of their choice. “With the Summer of Giants, we wanted to take on huge plays by huge playwrights,” he says. “It’s an adventurous theater-going experience!”
Tropical Waterfall: Waterstudy: properties & forces 81"H x 40"W
The 2013 Yale Summer Cabaret will take audiences through 400 years of history. From the French Baroque to Revolutionary Spain to Modern England, audiences can expect to experience the shifting poetics of language, culture, and society through the lens of theatre. The Summer of Giants delivers high-impact programming featuring expressive, theatrical works that embody the poetic heart of the time in which the plays were born. Tartuffe by Molière runs through June 15; August Strindberg’s Miss Julie runs June 20-29; The Shoemaker’s Prodigious Wife by Federico García Lorca is staged July 11-20; by Tennessee Williams’ In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel runs July 25-August 3; Heart’s Desire and Drunk Enough To Say I Love You by Caryl Churchill closes the gigantic season August 8-18. This 40th season is led by Artistic Director Dustin Wills (Directing ’14), Associate Artistic Director Chris Bannow (Acting ’14), Managing Director Molly Hennighausen (Theater Management ’15), and Associate Managing Director Anh Le (Theater Management ’15). Tickets can be purchased at summercabaret.org or by calling the box office at 203-432-1567. Single tickets start at $25 per ticket for the public and $14 for students. Group sales are also available. Y
www.armandobertoli.com
BIBLIOFILES
Banners, Baubles & Ribbons A new book celebrates the ephemera of New Haven’s 375 birthdays
Historic Treasures of New Haven: Celebrating 375 Years of the Elm City, by Laura A. Macaluso. History Press, 2013, 160 pp., $21.99 (soft). ISBN: 978-1-60949-771-2.
By MICHAEL C. BINGHAM
W
hat an odd little book this is. One wonders what its author and publisher were thinking about when they green-lighted Laura A. 50 June/July 2013
Macaluso’s Historic Treasures of New Haven. Its obviously earnest author, a graduate of Southern Connecticut State University, doesn’t even live in Connecticut. (A former staffer with the city’s Department of Arts, Culture & Tourism, Macaluso presently lives in Lynchburg, Va. “with her husband and an old cat.”) Despite its somewhat deceiving title, Historic Treasures is not a book about the history of New Haven. Neither is it a book about celebrations of the history of New Haven — e.g., the Elm City’s centennial, bicentennial, and so forth.
Oh no. This is in fact a book about the ephemera and collectables created coincidentally with the city’s signal milestone anniversaries. It’s an oddly specific undertaking, the rough equivalent of a baseball fan penning a history of the on-deck circle: Yes — but why? Whatever. Historic Treasures isn’t about great ideas, or noble figures such as John Davenport. It’s about things — banners, baubles, ribbons and medals, posters, postcards and photographs. The New Haven Colony’s earliest inhabitants did not pass the time playing beer pong. As Puritans NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
on of service of God, and the protection he their homes and families from the incursions of a savage foe, [thus]] they had little time to devote to what d idle then might have been considered e, pageant.” “Savage foe,” of course, n, referred to the native population, the Quinnipiacs, who by then were mong few in number and had been among ign the first indigenous peoples to sign treaties of accommodation with the European settlers. Possibly New Haven’s first celebration of significance took ng place in November 1781 following wn Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown — marking the successful conclusion of the Revolutionary lic War. “There has been great public rejoicing in this [New Haven] ed and neighboring towns,” reported the Connecticut Journal. they were constitutionally incompatible with celebrating just about anything — up to and including Christmas Day. According to a 1738 account in the longforgotten newspaper the Daily Herald, early New Haveners “were more urgently employed in the
No, the party didn’t really start until the 19th century, which according to the author practically commenced with the death of George Washington on December 14, 1799 at age 67. In
Do you smoke marijuana?
PAID VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Men ages 18-55 who use marijuana regularly and are in good physical health needed for research participation! For more information and to find out if you are eligible,
CALL: 203-974-7435 All calls are confidential. If found eligible, you will be compensated for your participation. HIC # 1005006735 HIC # 1202009714 Yale University School of Medicine
new haven
51
New Haven that signal event was memorialized with Harriet Cutler’s moving embroidery work “America Lamenting Her Loss at the Tomb of Washington” (c. 1800), now in the collection of the New Haven Museum. Later celebrations commemorated the 1815 Treaty of Ghent, which marked the end of America’s arguably most obscure and least understood conflict (I’m looking at you, Korea), the War of 1812. Eleven years later the City of Elms joined the rest of the young nation in marking what was called the “American Jubilee” commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Republic.
1020 Chapel Street • New Haven 203-865-3824 Raggsnewhaven.com
In business since 1998
Promote overall wellness of both mind and body. Gift
Renew
Available
Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork llc 410 State Street, North Haven
203.248.6897 www.renewtmb.com
To schedule: renewtmb@att.net CT License #001810
Today's Clothing Designer fashion for the woman who does not want cookie-cutter clothing. Clothing • Shoes • Lingerie • Accessories
We all have to wear shoes. Why not make it fun?
20% off with this ad. Not to be combined with any other
offer. Previous purchases excluded. In store only. Expires 7/31/2013.
22 Selden Street, Woodbridge • 203 397-9100 www.todaysclothing.com
New Haven’s first major celebratory hoedown took place in 1838 — the bicentennial of the colony’s founding, which was marked on April 25 of that year. Contemporary press reports called the events of the day “highly appropriate and impressive.” The keystone of the “second Centennial” (the term “bicentennial” having not yet entered into common usage) was a twohour oration at Center Church by Yale College Latin and ancient Greek professor James Luce Kingsley, from which most young people were spared. (Of the address the Daily Herald reported
that “to attempt an analysis [of Kingsley’s discourse] we have neither the time nor room.”) America’s centennial in 1876 would be the next occasion for New Haven to pull out the celebratory stops. An advertisement in the July 1 Columbian Weekly announced that “At 2 o’clock p.m. a grand BALLOON ASCENSION will take place from the Public Square. The celebrated Aeronaut, Prof. Fisher having been engaged to undertake a “flight among the clouds” in his beautiful aerial ship the ‘Eagle.’” Not even the sky, apparently, was the limit then. Into the 20th century such community celebrations gradually evolved into more selfconscious community events more firmly under the thumb of municipal government. Many readers will recall 1988’s swell shindig in celebration of New Haven’s 350th birthday (the handsome commemorative magazine for which was edited by yours truly). Unfortunately, this year’s 375th has produced little in the form of spontaneous revelry aside from an April hoedown on the Green and a handsome commemorate magazine published in January by…New Haven magazine, of course. Happy Birthday — again! Y
NEW HAVEN MAGAZINE
Marketplace Call or email for more information. 203-781-3480 support@conntact.com
Lady Olga’s Lingerie Your source for elegant bridal lingerie and fine intimate apparel...
Helping our communities hear better for more than 55 years
Hear Better, Right Here, Right Now! MAJOR BRAND Hearing Aids
Repair Dept. Personalized Service Complete Evaluations
Foundation Fashions, Specialty Bras Peignoir Sets, Bridal Slippers Bridesmaid Gifts, Garters & Accessories
3490 Whitney Ave, Hamden 203 288-1133 M-F 10 - 5:30, Sat - 5pm. Closed Sunday
Guilford Strawberry Hill Plaza
203-453-6611 New Haven Madison Towers
203-624-9857
zenithomnihearingcenters.com
How Well Do You Know New Haven?
5. The trademark that one sees on door locks is: A) Winchester B) Sargent C) Gilbert 6. Judgesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Cave is located: A)On West Rock
B) On East Rock
This quiz was initially published by the Free Public Library of New Haven in 1938. One imagines that students from three-quarters of a century ago who didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know the answers would have been beaten. Now, in the 21st century, the students beat the teachers. Progress? Anywayâ&#x20AC;Ś
C)In Grove Street Cemetery
1. The geographical area of the New Haven Green is:
8. An Indian chief who signed the deed of sale of New Haven was:
A) 16 acres B) 9 acres C) 6 acres
A) Momauguin B) Quinnipiac C) Sitting Bull
2. The first settlers to New Haven disembarked from the ship named:
7. One of these famous inventors is not connected with New Haven: C) Thomas Edison D) Eli Whitney Blake
9. The first mayor of New Haven was:
3. The hero who demands the keys to the Powder House on Foot Guard Day is:
10. Only one of the following statements is true:
A) Benedict Arnold B) Nathan Hale
A) Noah Webster wrote his dictionary in a house on College Street
C) The Empire State Building is roughly three imes as high
C) New Haven is the largest city in Connecticut
(1/2 mile from Rt. 10, 1 mile from I-691)
(203) 250-PAWS (7297) www.pawspet.com
-\SS` 9LZ[VYLK Â&#x2039; +V\ISL 7HULK Â&#x2039;>LH[OLY :[YPWWLK Â&#x2039; /PNOS` ,ULYN` ,MMLJPLU[
7HY 4HROW /UT A 7INDOW "ETTER 4HAN 9OU #AN "UY
ANSWERS: 6. A 7. C 8. A 9. C 10. A
b) West Rock is higher
312 East Johnson Ave., Cheshire
B) Center Church is the oldest church in New Haven
1. A 2. B 3. A 4. C 5. B
A) They are about the same height
Where your pet is treated like royalty!
A) Elihu Yale B) Theophilus Eaton C) Roger Sherman
4. One of the following statements describes the height of West Rock in comparison with the Empire State Building:
Luxury Suites Overnight & Day Boarding Play School t Cattery Grooming t And More!
A) Charles Goodyear B) Eli Whitney
A) Welcome B) Hector C) The Phantom Ship
C) George Washington
! h h h h h h h h A
0UJYLHZL ,ULYN` ,MMLJPLUJ` I`
Cost Less Than Quality Wood Replacement Windows
&REE %STIMATE s CT BI GLASS COM
The Original Guilford Coin Exchange, LLC
Wee donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t cut corners. We clean them! s 7EEKLY "I 7EEKLY /NE 4IME #LEANINGS s "ONDED )NSURED s 3ATISFACTION 'UARANTEE s #LEANING 3UPPLIES %QUIPMENT 0ROVIDED s 0ROFESSIONAL 7ORKERS
2EADY FOR A PROFESSIONAL CLEAN #ALL US TODAY MERRYMAIDS COM
3!6%
/FF 9OUR ST RD TH #LEANING
Get Money for Your Gold
Local LLo occa al B Bu Business us siin S Si in inc ncce 1 19 97 70 0 Since 1970
E Experts t iin collectible ll tibl coins i ttop $$ paid for your unwanted jewelry: gold, silver, sterling, diamonds. RELIABLE honest service. 69 WhitďŹ eld Street On the Guilford Green
203-453-9363
ART
Opening Old Lyme Landscapes: A Salute to Our Founders a members’ artist show. June 15-July 28 at Lyme Art Association, 90 Lyme St., Lyme. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Fri., 1-5 p.m. Sun. Free. 860-4347802, lymeartassociation.org. The Arts Council of Greater New Haven presents an exhibition of works by Connecticut artists Anita Soos and Ken Lovell. Soos’ works are painterly prints that are atmospheric and reference landscape, while “digital painter” Lovell programs random elements from computer-generated templates. June 18-September 20 at Gallery 195, 195 Church St. (4th fl.), New Haven. Open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Wed., 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Thurs.-Fri. Free. 203-772-2788, newhavenarts.org.
Critic’s Pick
Heaven Can’t Wait
The seasonable exhibition Summer in Connecticut features 80 paintings by 25 artists. June 21-August 2 (opening reception 5-8 p.m. June 21) at Susan Powell Fine Art, 679 Boston Post Rd., Madison. Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Wed.-Fri., noon-6 p.m. Sat., noon-3 p.m. Sun. Free. 203-318-0616, susanpowellfineart.com. Summer Showcase includes a variety of artwork by gallery artists, including collage/mixed media, watercolor, pottery, sculpture, oil, pastel and monoprints. July 1-August 31 at Elm City Artists Gallery, 55 Whitney Ave., New Haven. Open 10 a.m-6 p.m. daily except Sun. Free. 203-922-2359, elmcityartists.com. The Juried Knife Show Exhibit explores and highlights the artistry of contemporary bladesmithing. July 12-August 18 at Mill Gallery, 411 Church St., Guilford. Open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily, noon4 p.m. Sun. Free. 203-453-5947, guilfordartcenter.org. ‘Cadence No. 413’ by Anita Soos is one of the works on view at Gallery 195, in tandem with works by digital painter Ken Lovell.
The Guilford Art Center’s Craft Expo 13 includes works in nearly every medium — clay, glass, leather, metal, mixed media, metal and nonmetal jewelry, wearable and nonwearable fiber, paper, photography, clay, soap and wood — representing more than 175 nationally recognized craft artisans. July 18-21 on the St. Michael the Archangel,’ tempera and gold leaf on wood c. 1800, central Russia, 10.5 x 8.75 in. From the Knights of Columbus Museum Collection.
In the Knights of Columbus Museum exhibition Windows into Heaven, more than 225 examples of Russian Orthodox iconography, along with other liturgical and devotional items, are on display. Icons are often called “windows into heaven” because they are said to give the viewer a glimpse of the eternal realm. Many of the items are more than 100 years old, predating the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. As a form of sacred art, iconographers historically prayed or fasted before and during the creation of an icon. Traditionally, icons were painted in egg tempera on wood and often accented with gold leaf or covered with ornately gilt metal covers called rizas. Rich in symbolism, they are still used extensively in Orthodox churches and monasteries, and many Russian homes have icons hanging on the wall in a “beautiful” (or prayer) corner. Through September 30 at Knights of Columbus Museum, 1 Columbus Plaza, New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. Free. 203-865-0400, kofcmuseum.org.
54 June/July 2013
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
blackness in animated and sequential art. Through June 30 at Artspace, 50 Orange St., New Haven. Open noon-6 p.m. Wed.-Thurs., noon-8 p.m. Fri.-Sat. Free. 203-772-2709, artspacenh.org. Gallery One Group Show features work of mid-career artists in a wide variety of media and styles, from representational to abstract, in photography, printmaking, painting, sculpture and ceramics. Through June 30 at Mill Gallery, Guilford Art Center, 411 Church St., Guilford. Open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily, noon-4 p.m. Sun. Free. 203-453-5947, guilfordartcenter.org. The Arts Council of Greater New Haven presents On Nature, featuring works by Aspasia Patti Anos, Anna Bresnick, Laurie Flaherty, Michael Galvin, Sarah Macaslin, Paulette Rosen, Kyle Skar and Balam Soto. Through June 30 at Perspectives, the Gallery at Whitney Center, 200 Leeder Hill Dr., Hamden. Open 4-7 p.m. Tues. & Thurs., 1-4 p.m. Sat. Free. 203-772-2788, newhavenarts.org. Color Out of the Blue is an exhibition of paintings by Kristine Zallinger. Through July 2 at New Haven Free Public Library Art Gallery, 133 Elm St., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Mon.-Thurs., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat. Free. 203946-8130, nhfpl.org.
‘Shadow Dancer, Fourth View’ by Derek Bencomo, koa root, 2003. From the exhibition Conversations with Wood: Selections from the Waterbury Collection at the Yale University Art Gallery.
Guilford Green, 33 Whitfield St., Guilford. $7 ($5 seniors) 203-453-5947, guilfordartcenter.org. Summer Painting & Sculpture Exhibition by member artists. August 5- September 21 at Lyme Art Association, 90 Lyme St., Lyme. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Fri., 1-5 p.m. Sun. Free. 860-434-7802, lymeartassociation.org.
Continuing Société Anonyme: Modernism for America features works by more than 100 artists who made significant contribution to modernism including Constantin Brancusi, Paul Klee, Piet Mondrian and Joseph Stella. Through June 23 at Yale University Art Gallery, 1111 Chapel St., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily except Mon. (until 8 p.m. Thurs.) 1-6 p.m. Sun. Free. 203-432-0600, artgalleryinfo@yale.edu. Alexander Purves: Roman Sketches afford the viewer glimpses into the artist’s own drawing practice. The sketches in this show have been taken from Purves’ Roman sketchbooks. Through June 28 at Whitney Humanities Center 53 Wall St., New Haven. Open 3-5 p.m. Mon. & Wed. Free. 203-432-0670, yale.edu/whc.
Flowers & Gardens is juried by Jan Blencowe. All works on display depict flowers and gardens in all styles and media including photography. Through July 5 at Firehouse Art Gallery, 81 Naugatuck Ave., Milford. Free. Open noon-4 p.m. Fri-Sun. 203-206-0016, milfoardarts.org.
Conversations with Wood: Selections from the Waterbury Collection, a wood-art collection of Minneapolitans Ruth and David Waterbury. Over 70 objects are presented representing the changing approaches to the medium during the past 25 years, from simple turned vessels to sculpted and constructed objects. The collection includes work by many prominent artists in the field, including Michelle Holzapfel, Robyn Horn, Todd Hoyer, William Hunter, Ron Kent, Michael Mode, Hayley Smith, Alan Stirt, Bob Stocksdale and Hayley Smith. Through August 18 at Yale University Art Gallery, 1111 Chapel St., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays except Mon. (until 8 p.m. Thurs.) 1-6 p.m. Sun. Free. 203-432-0600, artgalleryinfo@yale.edu. Strange Beauty: The Photography of Carolyn Marks Blackwood. Through September 8 at Mattatuck Museum Arts & History Center, 144 W. Main St., Waterbury. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.Sat., noon-5 p.m. Sun. $5 ($4 seniors, under 16 free). 203-753-0381, mattatuckmuseum.org. Art in Focus: St. Ives Abstraction. The exhibition explores how the Cornish town of St. Ives inspired and influenced the artists who visited there and made it their home, through its striking coastal landscape and its vibrant artistic community. Artists represented include Ben Nicholson, Barbara Hepworth, John Wells, Roger Hilton and Patrick Heron. Through September 30 at the Yale Center for British Art, 1080 Chapel St., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat., noon-5 p.m. Sun. Free. 203-432-2800, britishart.yale.edu.
Railroad Ave., Witch Hazel Complex, Bldg. 7, Essex. Open 1-5 p.m. Wed.-Fri., 1-6 p.m. Sat. Free. 860-767-7572, theorisonproject.com. Riley Brewster: Works and the Self-Portraits of Samuel Rothbort (1882-1971). Through June 29 at Fred Giampietro Gallery, 315 Peck St., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tues.-Fri., 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat. Free. 203-777-7760, giampietrogallery. com. New Haven Area and Beyond includes paintings, pottery, sculpture and tile painting by resident artist in collage/mixed media, watercolor, pastels, and oil. Through June 29 at Elm City Artists Gallery, 55 Whitney Ave., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily except Sun. Free. 203-922-2359, elmcityartists.com. Water’s Edge, an exhibition of prints, paintings and drawings by Susan Newbold in tandem with photographs by her daughter, Brooke Smith. Through June 29 at City Gallery, 994 State St., New Haven. Open noon-4 p.m. Thurs.-Sun. Free. 203-782-2489, city-gallery.org. Views of New England, Rosemary Benivegna watercolors. Through June 30 at the Orange Town Hall Gallery, 617 Orange Center Rd., Orange. Open 8:30-4:30 p.m. daily. Free. 203798-4970, orange-ct.gov.
Bridges: A Community Support System, a themed art show highlighting the many interpretations of “bridges” from the literal to the symbolic in two and three dimensions. Through June 28 at Milford Center for the Arts, 40 Railroad Ave., Milford. Open 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tues.-Fri. Free. 203-878-6647, milfordarts. org.
New Member’s Show 2013 features work of Penny Cook, Tom Edwards, Julie Fraenkel, Sven Martson, Fethi Meghielli, Jean Perkins and Maureen Squires. Through June 30 at Kehler Liddell Gallery, 873 Whalley Ave., New Haven. Open 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Thurs.-Fri., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun. Free. 203-389-9555, kehlerliddell.com.
Trashed, an exhibition of paintings by Janet Lage. Through June 29 at the Orison Project, 8
Curated by artist Kenya Robinson, ‘Toonskin is an exhibition exploring depictions of
new haven
55
MUSIC
SCHUMANN Piano Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 47. 8 p.m. August 2 at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $35-$30. 203-245-5736, chestnuthillconcerts.org .
Popular
Classical The New England Guitar Society hosts its annual members recital. 2 p.m. June 30 at Milford Center for the Arts, 40 Railroad Ave. South, Milford. Free. 203-878-6647, milfordarts.org. Music on the Green heats up when the New Haven Symphony Orchestra performs Dueling Divas. Opera divas Jamilyn Manning-White and Toby Newman launch fireworks of vocal virtuosity, singing familiar tunes from the Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni and Carmen. Grab the family and a picnic basket for an unforgettable summer evening. The concert opens with music from the Mariachi Academy of Connecticut, directed by Evangeline Mendoza Bourgeois. 6 p.m. July 20 on the New Haven Green. Free. 203-865-0831, newhavensymphony.org. Chestnut Hill Concerts presents its inaugural offering of the 2013 summer season, performed by the piano quartet of Erin Keefe, violin, violist Beth Guterman, Ronald Thomas, cello and pianist Anna Polonsky. JOACHIM Andantino & Allegro Scherzoso for Violin & Piano, Op. 1, Romanze for Viola & Piano; CLARA SCHUMANN Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 17; ROBERT
Local drums+keyboard indie rock duo Mates of State play what promises to be an as-always exuberant show at the Spaceland Ballroom with Glasgow-based Paws and Brooklyn’s Modern Merchant. 8 p.m. June 15 at Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $15. 203-288-6400, spacelandballroom.com Ska-punk mainstays Less Than Jake hit the Toad as part of their current tour, ahead of the anticipated release of the band’s first new album in five years this fall, and will be supported by Hostage Calm, Pentimento and Wolves at Bay. 8 p.m. June 15 at Toad’s Place, 300 York St., New Haven. $20 ($17 advance). 203624-8623, toadsplace.com. On the heels of being denied copies of its own new album The Hands That Thieve by its own record label, ska-punk outfit Streetlight Manifesto brings its “The End of the Beginning Tour” to Toad’s Place. The group promises to largely retire from touring following this circuit, proceeds from which will fund the ongoing legal action against its label. 8 p.m. June 18 at Toad’s
Y institute of sacred music
Performances · Exhibitions and more Presenting
Great Organ Music at Yale · Yale Camerata Yale Schola Cantorum · Yale Literature and Spirituality Series and more
Place, 300 York St., New Haven. $20 ($17.50 advance). 203-6248623, toadsplace.com. It’ll be a combination of New Orleans spirit and East Coast funk ripe for heart-stomping dancing when the No BS Brass Band stops in at Café Nine to unleash its energetic amalgam of funk, jazz, Klezmer, calypso and classic rock. 8 p.m. June 19 at Cafe Nine, 250 State St., New Haven. $10 ($8 advance). 203-7898281, cafenine.com. Art-rock hero and former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne graces the City of Elms in tandem with the virtuosic and eccentric St. Vincent (a/k/a Annie Clark), as the pair tour in support of their collaborative album Love This Giant with a full brass section. 7:30 p.m. June 20 at the Shubert Theater, 247 College St., New Haven. $58-$78. 203-562-5666, shubert.com. Long-running Duluth, Minn., “slow-core” band Low have made a name for themselves with their sedate arrangements and delicate harmonies in earlier years, and the more edgy sound of recent albums. The trio will return to Connecticut with support from former Soul Coughing frontman Mike Doughty. 8 p.m. June 20 at Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $25. 203-288-6400, spacelandballroom.com. Contemporary jazz and R&B singer/songwriter Will Downing is known for his rich baritone voice and interpretations of R&B and pop classics going back to the early 1980s. He stops at SCSU in support of his 16th album over 25 years, Silver. 8 p.m. June 29 at the Lyman Center at Southern Connecticut State University, 501 Crescent St., New Haven. $33 ($30 SCSU students/ staff ). 203-392-6161, southernct.edu/lyman. Summer means it’s time again for the Branford Jazz on the Green series, which returns for its fifth year. The free jazz shows take place each Thursday summer-long (minus July 4). June 27: Giacomo Gates; July 11: Vincent Ingala; July 18: Ed Fast & Congo Bop Latin Jazz; July 25: Brian Torff; August 1: Reunion; August 8: Coast Guard Band; August 15: Matuto with Clay Ross; August 22: Lao Tizer, 6:30 p.m. on the Branford Town Green. Free. 203-488-8304, branfordjazz.com. Teacher and composer Stephen Bennett is a master of the harp guitar, unusual 12-string instrument that combines an acoustic guitar with six open sub-bass strings, in a design out of a children’s storybook. He has released 25 albums and is founder of the annual Harp Guitar Gathering. 12:10 p.m. July 2 at Wesleyan University Center for the Arts’ Crowell Concert Hall, 283 Washington Terr., Middletown. Free. 860-685-2695. wesleyan. edu/cfa. It certainly is the “Time of the Season” for outdoor concerts, and who better than 1960s British psychedelic pop legends The Zombies, who cap off their summer tour in Hamden as part of the Hamden Arts Commission’s Free Summer Concert Series. 7:30 p.m. July 5 at Meadowbrook, 2761 Dixwell Ave., Hamden. Free. 203-287-2546, hamdenartscommission.org. Jackson Browne obviously isn’t yet running on empty, as the classically sensitive folksinger, now 64, brings his 2013 acoustic tour to Wallingford for an intimate performance in a big setting. 7:30 p.m. July 9 at Oakdale Theatre, 95 South Turnpike Rd., Wallingford. $59-$39. 203-265-1501, oakdale.com. Singer/songwriter Eilen Jewel has covered much musical terrain since her 2006 debut, from folk and jug band to country, gospel, garage rock, blues and jazz, all the while buttressing her reputation as the “Queen of the Minor Key.” Bring tissues. 8 p.m. July 11 at Cafe Nine, 250 State St., New Haven. $12. 203789-8281, cafenine.com. Relive the pop glory of 1980s era Jefferson Starship as former singer Mickey Thomas brings his Starship band to Hamden for a free concert, ostensibly under the stars. 7:30 p.m. July 12 at Town Center Park at Meadowbrook, 2761 Dixwell Ave., Hamden. Free. 203-287-2546, hamdenartscommission.org.
For latest calendar information call 203.432.5062 or visit www.yale.edu/ism 56 June/July 2013
New Haven native Mark Mulcahy has had a long and critically acclaimed career in the alternative scene since the mid-‘80s when he then fronted the band Miracle Legion and later was behind the music for Nickelodeon’s Pete and Pete. He has earned accolades from the likes of Radiohead, Pixies singer Frank Black, and REM’s Michael Stipe. 8 p.m. July 12 at Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $15 ($12 advance). 203-288-6400, spacelandballroom.com
NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Newman. 8 p.m. July 13 at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $65-$60. 877-503-1286, katharinehepburntheater.org. Likely the coolest and craziest show of the summer, The Flaming Lips brings its supremely psychedelic out-there rock to Wallingford for one of a pair of shows with prominent UK space-rock band Spiritualized. The Lips’ live shows are likened to either an acid trip or the best birthday party you ever had growing up —or both. 7:30 p.m. July 15 at Oakdale Theatre, 95 South Turnpike Rd., Wallingford. $51.50-$41.50. 203-265-1501, oakdale.com. Legendary country all-stars Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell are touring in support of their new album Old Yellow Moon, which reunites the former Hot Band mainstays. Catch them both during a stop in Simsbury for its Summer Concerts series. 7:30 p.m. July 16 at Simsbury Meadows, 22 Iron Horse Blvd., Simsbury. $80-$35. 860-651-4052. simsbury-ct.gov/ performing-arts-center.
Opera diva Jamilyn Manning-White joins Toby Newman and the New Haven Symphony for an evening of vocal virtuosity July 20 on the New Haven Green.
Vocalist and Broadway actress Maureen McGovern has had a long and storied career, which includes the Academy Awardwinning hit “The Morning After.” She stops in Old Saybrook to perform a nostalgic set of tributes to the likes of Carole King, Bob Dylan, James Taylor, Lennon/McCartney and Randy
The long-running John Spencer Blues Explosion has been venturing to the more experimental side of alternative rock since 1991, incorporating punk, rockabilly, soul, R&B and noise rock into its sound, with unconventional recording techniques and instrumentation including oddities such as the Theremin. 8 p.m. July 17 at Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $15 ($12 advance). 203-288-6400, spacelandballroom.com Evan Dando is the sole remaining original member of his seminal alternative rock band The Lemonheads, and the group hasn’t released a new album since 2009. But that hasn’t stopped it from making regular tours over the past few years, including a return to Connecticut this summer. 8 p.m. July 21 at Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $20. 203-2886400, spacelandballroom.com
The Afro-Semitic Experience is a seven-piece ensemble of African-American and Jewish-American musicians dedicated to promoting the music — and the stories behind the music — of the Jewish and African diasporas, which includes the styles of gospel, Klezmer, nigunim, spirituals, bebop and swing. 8 p.m. July 25 at Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $15. 203-288-6400, spacelandballroom.com. You won’t need any tickets for paradise when classic rock chart-topper Eddie Money stops in Hamden for a free summer concert. 7:30 p.m. July 26 at Town Center Park at Meadowbrook, 2761 Dixwell Ave., Hamden. Free. 203-287-2546, hamdenartscommission.org. Howie Day has been hitting the streets since the age of 17, going from playing coffeehouses in Boston to opening for huge acts like Sting, Sheryl Crow and Tori Amos and releasing the platinum single “Collide,” which ended up on numerous TV soundtracks in the mid-2000s. His one-man show will stop at the Kate, where he will play songs old and new. 7:30 p.m. July 25 at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $25. 877-503-1286, katharinehepburntheater.org. Professional U2 tribute act Under A Blood Red Sky performs songs from across the legendary Irish band’s discography by recreating concerts from the group’s 1983’s “War” tour to the present. 8 p.m. July 26 at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $25. 877-503-1286, katharinehepburntheater.org. Motor City Madman Ted Nugent seems to get more press these days as an outspoken conservative activist than as a guitar hero, so it’s almost refreshing to see him take the stage again. The Elm City will see him up close when he hits Toad’s in August. 8:30 p.m. August 6 at Toad’s Place, 300 York St., New Haven. $35 ($30 advance). 203-624-8623, toadsplace.com.
Traditional Italian Cuisine in a Family Atmosphere A d Winning Award Wi i Market M k t Purveyors of the World’s Best Fish Guaranteed Fresh
• Shrimp • Scallops • Live Maine Lobsters • Wild King Salmon • Large variety of Fresh Fish Mon-Sat 9AM to 6PM
One Calll Does It All! 2239 State St. Hamden
201 Food Terminal Plaza | New Haven, CT (203) 498-2488 | www.brazis.com
203-624-6171 NumberOneFish.com new haven
57
ONSTAGE Cabaret Miss Julie, by August Strindberg, translated by Kenneth McLeish. At the bottom there isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t that much difference between people andâ&#x20AC;Śpeople. Miss Julie owns Jean. Or rather, Miss Julieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s father owns Jean. On the eve of the mid-summer festival, two 20-something kids take turns demolishing class, society and each other. Beyond sex, beyond manipulation, Strindbergâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s powerful depiction of passion and desire reveals what people really are capable of. Chris Bannow directs. June 20-29 at Yale Summer Cabaret, 217 Park St., New Haven. $25. 203-432-1567, summercabaret.com. The Shoemakersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Prodigious Wife, translation by Gwynne Edwards. An older shoemaker marries an unruly young woman who berates the neighbors and humiliates her husband with scorn and the threat of younger suitors she could have married. Her husband eventually leaves her alone to make a living for herself. She fends off Casanovas and Don Juans with laments for her lost husband. But when a traveling one-man circus comes to town and unfolds a story very similar to her own, she discovers something that might cure her woes. But will it cure her ways? Dustin Wills directs. July 11-20 at Yale Summer Cabaret, 217 Park St., New Haven. $25. 203-432-1567, summercabaret.com. Tokyo Hotel. Miriam is itching for a fling with the native barman. She is an American in Tokyo, and she needs another drink. While she flirts with the nervous barman, her husband
Mark is back at their hotel room, splaying his paint-soaked body on canvasses. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an artist, and in his mania he insists he has just discovered color. Will Miriam find abroad what she cannot find in her husbandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fleeting grasp of reality? July 25-August 3 Yale Summer Cabaret, 217 Park St., New Haven. $25. 203-432-1567, summercabaret.com. In both of these Caryl Churchill one-act plays, the breakdown of language creates the universe. In Heartâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Desire, a mother and father await their daughterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s return from school abroad. The writer, however, edits as she goes, and the play ends and starts over and over again. Each time, it embarks on a new outrageous sequence of events and marks further fear and anxiety the longer the parents must wait. Drunk Enough To Say I Love You introduces us to lovers Sam and Guy. Their fragmented political discourse reveals their relationship to be more than that of just lovers, but actual countries: one giant America dominating a disenchanted England. August 8-18 at Yale Summer Cabaret, 217 Park St., New Haven $25. 203-432-1567, summercabaret.com.
Opening The Red Velvet Cake War by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten is a comedy set in the town of Sweetgum, Tex. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the story of three cousins and their Aunt La Merie and their wager over who can bake the best red velvet cake. 8 p.m. June 15, 21-22, 28-29 and 2 p.m. June 16 & 23 at Phoenix Stage Company, 686 Rubber Ave., Naugatuck. $22 ($18 seniors). 203-632-8546, phoenixstagecompany.com. Hello Dolly! The classic musical about Dolly Levi who meddles in many a personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s affairs while at the same time seeking her own â&#x20AC;&#x153;half a millionaire.â&#x20AC;? Jerry Hermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s score includes tunes like â&#x20AC;&#x153;Put on Your Sunday Clothes,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Before the Parade Passes By,â&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;It Only Takes a Moment.â&#x20AC;? June 28â&#x20AC;&#x201C;September 8 at
One of the brightest lights in hip-hop theater, Marc Bamuthi Joseph first performed Word Becomes Flesh as a solo work in 2003. For its New England premiere at Wesleyan, the production has been reinvented for an ensemble cast of six.
Now Open 63 Grove Street, New Haven
La Cuisine Cafe & Catering
We Bake Judieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bread
'ROVE 3TREET .EW (AVEN s 58 June/July 2013
www.lacusine.net NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Goodspeed Opera House, 6 Main St., East Haddam. $78-$35. 860-873-8668, goodspeed. org. Footloose, the heartfelt story of a father longing for the son he lost and of a young man aching for the father who walked out on him. Includes the Oscar- and Tony-nominated Top 40 score and augmented with dynamic new songs for the stage. 7:30 p.m. Wed.-Thurs., 8 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Wed. & Sun. July 3-28 at Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $40 ($35 seniors, $20 students, $15 12 & under). 860767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse.com. Devora Reiss and Queen B Puppetry presents Sammy and the Magical Sandbox and The Wizard of Wallaby Wallow. 11 a.m. July 12 at Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $12. 860-767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse.com. Marc Bamuthi’s Joseph’s Word Becomes Flesh documents letters from a young single father to his unborn son using spoken word, dance and live music. 8 p.m. July 18 at Wesleyan Center for the Arts, 329 Mount Vernon St., Middletown. $19 ($17 senior citizens). 860685-3355, wesleyan.edu/cfa. Enchanted April, a light, romantic comedy about two housewives who uncharacteristically rent a villa in Italy for an impulsive holiday away from their otherwise mundane lives. 8 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.; 3 p.m. Sun. July 18-21 at Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $20 ($15 students). 860-510-0473, katherinehepburntheater.org.
Jason Boies’ Strange Bedfellows follows Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Edward Rutledge on their way to a peace conference with the British on Staten Island in September 1776. 8 p.m. July 19-20, 23, 26-27 and 2 p.m. July 21 & 28 at Phoenix Stage Co., 686 Rubber Ave., Naugatuck. $22 ($18 seniors). 203-632-8546, phoenixstagecompany.com.
the entertainment industry — the business part of show business that made possible this cultural phenomenon. 7:30 p.m. Wed.-Thurs., 8 pm. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Wed. & Sun. August 7-September 1 at Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $40 ($35 seniors, $20 students, $15 12 & under). 860-767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse. com.
LMNOP: A New Musical. When letters begin to fall from a monument in town, government officials ban them one by one. Chaos ensues until a determined teenage girl rallies the community to fight for freedom of speech. This unusual musical is part romance, part clever word game and part adult fable that reminds us of how precious our liberties are, how quickly unbridled extremism can take them from us, and how important it is to have the courage to stand up for what you believe. July 25-August 18 at Goodspeed Opera House, 6 Main St., East Haddam. $44. 860-873-8668, goodspeed.org.
It’s 1942 and the luxurious Palm Beach Royale Hotel is under siege as two of Hollywood’s biggest divas feud for the same suite. Mistaken identities, overblown egos, double entendres and a lap dog named Mr. Boodies round out the comedy Suite Surrender. 8 p.m. August 10, 16-17, 23-24 and 2 p.m. August 11 &18 at Phoenix Stage Co., 686 Rubber Ave., Naugatuck. $22 ($18 seniors). 203-632-8546, phoenixstagecompany.com.
Summer Theatre of New Canaan presents Dr. Suess’ Cat in the Hat. 1 p.m. July 30 at Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $20 ($12 children). 860510-0473, katherinehepburntheater.org. One of William Shakespeare’s best comedies is Much Ado About Nothing. 7:30 p.m. August 7-11 on the Guilford Green, Church St., Guilford. Free. 204-453-3890, shorelinearts.org. Dreamgirls is not just about the singing and the dancing and the performing. The play is also about the behind-the-scenes reality of
Elm Shakespeare stages its annual production in Edgerton Park. This year it’s the Bard’s signal tragedy Julius Caesar. Alvin Epstein and James Andreassi direct. 8 p.m. August 15-September 1 at Edgerton Park, 75 Cliff St., New Haven. Free. 203-874-0801, elmshakespeare.org A Little Bit of Magic, a musical about DoNothing Dale, a little picked-upon wizard, wants to know what her little bit of magic is. On her journey to find out, she meets such characters as the laughing Coco the Clown and the singing Marilyn Melody, and she finds that she’s just as special as everyone else in the world. 11 a.m. August 16 at Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $12. 860767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse.com.
Continuing Eastbound Theatre presents Private Eyes, a “relationship thriller” written by Steven Dietz and directed by Chris Peterson. 8 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. through June 23 at Milford Fine Arts Council, 40 Railroad Ave., Milford. $17 ($15 seniors). 203-878-6647, milfordarts.org. A brand new play from one of the writers of The Simpsons, I’m Connecticut is a wacky, fast-paced, sweet romantic comedy about Marc, a Nutmeg State native who struggles with relationships and feelings of inadequacy. Why? Because he comes from Connecticut — land of steady habits, sanity and politeness. 7:30 p.m. Wed.-Thurs., 8 pm. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Wed. & Sun. June 5-23 at Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $40 ($35 seniors, $20 students, $15 12 & under). 860-767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse.com. Anticipation builds on the Tait College campus as game day approaches but the football hero must first pass a big exam in order to play. When he unexpectedly falls for his tutor, romance blooms and hijinks ensue in the musical comedy Good News! Score includes songs such as “You’re the Cream in My Coffee,” “The Varsity Drag,” and “Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries.” Through June 22 at Goodspeed Opera House, 6 Main St., East Haddam. $80-$37. 860-873-8668, goodspeed.org.
a benefit for the restoration of the music shed
A once in a lifetime event. This is your chance to say: "I was there..." SATURDAY R JULY 6, 2013 R 8:00 PM
Hamden’s Neighborhood Restaurant Have Your Next Meeting or Party Function With Us! Parties • Receptions • Fundraisers • All Your Special Events
Patio Now Open! • Private Room for100+ People w/ Private Bar • Wine Room Available for Smaller Events • Handicap Accessible
norfolkmusic.org
860.542.3000 Select performances recorded for broadcast on New York City’s classical music station
LIVE Entertainment Every Saturday Night
203.287.8887 • 1640 640 W Whitney hit A Ave., Hamden • www.parkcentraltavern.com new haven
59
CALENDAR Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $8. 877-503-1286, katharinehepburntheater.org.
BELLES LETTRES The Mystery Book Club meets the first Wednesday to discuss a pre-selected book. Books are available for check out prior to the meeting. 3-4 p.m. June 5, July 3 at Blackstone Library, 758 Main St., Branford. Free. 203-483-6653, blackstone.lioninc.org/ booktalk.htm. New members are welcomed to the Blackstone Library Second Tuesday Book Club. The group meets on the second Tuesday to discuss a pre-selected book. Books available for loan in advance of discussion. 6:45-8 p.m. June 11, July 9 at Blackstone Library, 758 Main St., Branford. Free. 203-488-1441, ext. 318, blackstone.lioninc.org/booktalk.htm. Release your inner poet. Time Out for Poetry meets third Thursdays and welcomes those who wish to share an original short poem, recite a stanza or simply to listen. Ogden Nash, Robert Frost, William Shakespeare, Dr. Seuss and even the Burma Shave signs live again. 12:30-2 p.m. June 20, July 18 at Scranton Library, 801 Boston Post Rd., Madison. Free. 203-245-7365. The Poetry Institute of New Haven hosts Poetry Open Mics each third Thursday Come hear an eclectic mix of poetic voices. 7 p.m. June 20, July 18 at Young Men’s Institute Library, 847 Chapel St., New Haven. Free. thepoetryinstitute.com.
BENEFITS Aviation enthusiasts of all ages will have a rare opportunity to go “airside” at Bradley International Airport when the New England Air Museum presents its first-ever Great Aviation Adventure, a two-day fundraiser for the New England Air Museum. More than two dozen aircraft will be on view, with several offering visits into the cockpits. Featured will be helicopters, corporate jets, military aircraft, antiques and even home-built planes. The centerpiece of the weekend will be a flying B-25J Mitchell, restored as “Panchito,” an aircraft that served with the 396th Bomb Squadron, 41st Bomb Group, 7th Air Force, stationed in the Central Pacific during World War II. The bomber will make five flights each day with five passengers (@ $425) per ride. 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. June 22-23 at New England Air Museum, 36 Perimeter Rd., Windsor Locks. $17 ($16 seniors, $6.50 children). 860-623-3305, neam.org.
CINEMA Clark Gable and Lana Turner star in Somewhere I’ll Find You (1942, 108 min., USA). Two brothers, both war correspondents, vie for the affection of the same girl at the beginning of World War II, and later find her doing orphan work in China. Free pizza, too! 5 p.m. June 27 at Hagaman Memorial Library, 227 Main St., East Haven. Free. Registration. 203-468-3890, hagamanlibrary.info. The Connecticut Film Festival presents a sneak preview of the film Clutter, a drama about a compulsive hoarder and her grown children, who must clean the family home or face eviction. When county health inspectors give the Bradfords one week to clean their dangerously hoarded family home, long-buried resentments, fears and grief begin to come to the surface, forcing the entire family to face what it is they value most in life. 7 p.m. June 30 at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $30. 877-503-1286, katharinehepburntheater.org. A Kate Classic film presentation is Long Day’s Journey Into Night (1962, 174 min., USA). Katharine Hepburn received her ninth Best Actress Oscar nomination for playing Mary Tyrone, a depressed, unstable addict in the movie version of Eugene O’Neill’s drama.. The role also won her Best Actress at Cannes in 1962. Sidney Lumet directs. 2 & 7 p.m. August 20 at Katharine
60 June/July 2013
COMEDY Every Wednesday evening Joker’s Wild opens its stage to anyone who wants to try standup comedy — from brand-new comics to amateurs to seasoned pros. As Forrest Gump might say, each Open-Mic Night is kind of like a box of chocolates. 9 p.m. Wednesdays at Joker’s Wild, 232 Wooster St., New Haven. $5. 203-773-0733, jokerswildclub.com. Old Saybrook resident Vincent McElhone began his stand-up career 20 years ago at an NYC open-mic night. Since then he has worked alongside such national headliners as Denis Leary, Brian Regan and Joe Rogan. Now he gets to come home — to the Kate. 8 p.m. July 5 at Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $20. 877-503-1286, katharinehepburntheater.org.
DANCE Gallim Dance Artistic Director Andrea Miller took the Center for the Arts by storm when her company performed at DanceMasters Weekend in 2011. Hailed for their quick wit, technical virtuosity, and visceral movement style, Miller’s works embody fearless physicality. The ensemble will perform the New England premiere of Mama Call (2011), and Pupil Suite (2010), which had been postponed from the group’s original engagement in February 2013. Mama Call has its roots in Andrea Miller’s Sephardic-American heritage. The work explores ideas of displacement and alienation as it affected Spanish Jews during the centuries surrounding the Inquisition. 8 p.m. July 11-12 at CFA Theater, 45 Wyllys Ave., Middletown. $25 ($20 seniors, $10 students). 860-685-3355, wesleyan.edu/cfa.
A young refreshing face of comedy, Nore Davis delivers an energetic performance filled with witty quips and sharp punch lines, combined with an amazing stage presence. Edgy and clean, Davis tells it like it is, speaking to audiences everywhere. Aaron David Ward open. 8 p.m. July 12, 8 & 10:30 p.m. July 13 at Joker’s Wild, 232 Wooster St., New Haven. $18. 203-773-0733, jokerswildclub.com.
Souleymane Badolo: WATIDSOWBO — Come Dance With The World. Born in Burkina Faso, choreographer and performer Badolo’s heritage is a driving force in his work. He founded his own company, Kongo Ba Teria, in 1993. Since moving to New York in 2009, in addition to his own work, he has performed work created for him by Reggie Wilson, and was featured in the New England premiere of Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and Nora Chipaumire’s visible at Wesleyan last October. For this event he will demonstrate and discuss his creative process. 12:10 p.m. July 23 at Crowell Concert Hall, 50 Wyllys Ave., Middletown. Free. 860-685-3355, wesleyan.edu/cfa.
CRAFTS
FAIRS & FESTIVALS
Calling all knitters and crocheters! Meeting last Tuesdays, the Hagaman Library’s casual Knitting Circle is open to all who want to share tips and show off new projects. 6-8 p.m. June 25, July 30 at Hagaman Memorial Library, 227 Main St., East Haven. Free. 203-468-3890, hagamanlibrary.info.
The annual Connecticut Irish Festival, Feis & Agricultural Fair highlights the best in Celtic dance, sports, music and culture. On Sunday, hundreds of dancers will participate in a competition that prepares many of them for world-class events. The Wolfe Tones heads the musical lineup, which also features the Narrowbacks, Auld Locals and the McLean Ave. Band. The festival has something for everyone — from the best traditional and contemporary Irish music and set dancing, to great food and a 5K road race to benefit ALS, from cultural and agricultural displays, to children’s activities and rides, as well as an Irish shopping and craft village. 11 a.m.-11 p.m. June 22, 8:15 a.m.7 p.m. June 23 at North Haven Fairgrounds, Washington Ave., North Haven. $10 advance, $12 at door (children under 16 free). ctirishfestivaltickets@gmail.com, ctirishfestival.com.
In celebration of its 56th year, the Guilford Art Center’s annual Craft Expo returns to the Guilford Green, celebrating the arts with its extensive array of handmade crafts by more than 175 nationally recognized American artists. Last year more than 14,000 artists, collectors and visitors made the pilgrimage. Noon-9 p.m. July 18-19, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. July 20, noon-5 p.m. July 21 on Guilford Green. Free. 203-453-5947, guilfordartcenter.org.
CULINARY Consiglio’s Cooking Class Club. Chef Maureen Nuzzo explains and demonstrates how to prepare mouth-watering southern Italian dishes that have been passed down from generation to generation. June’s menu includes mushrooms stuffed with spinach, mozzarella and roasted peppers, mixed greens with strawberries and oranges, risotto with scallops and asparagus and strawberry Napoleon with whipped cream and strawberries. July’s menu: clams casino, figs with prosciutto and gorgonzola, homemade porcini mushroom ravioli topped with grilled chicken and chocolate mousse cake. 6:30 p.m. June 6, 13, 20 and July 11, 18, 25 at Consiglio’s Restaurant, 165 Wooster St., New Haven. $65. Reservations. 203-865-4489, consiglios.com. City Farmers Markets New Haven. Eat local! Enjoy seasonal fruits, vegetables, and herbs from local farms including seafood, meat, milk, cheese, handcrafted bread and baked goods, honey, more. WOOSTER SQUARE: 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays through December 21 at Russo Park, corner Chapel St. and DePalma Ct. EDGEWOOD PARK: 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Sundays through December 22 at Whalley and West Rock Aves. DOWNTOWN: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesdays June 19-November 27 on the Green at Temple & Chapel Sts. FAIR HAVEN: 2-6 p.m. Thursdays July 11-October 31 at Grand Ave. & Poplar St. THE HILL: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Fridays July 12-October 25 at Connecticut Mental Health Center, 34 Park St. 203-773-3736, cityseed.org.
Sponsored by WoodenBoat Magazine, the 22st annual Wooden Boat Show comes to Mystic Seaport. Visit with a wide array of vendors, learn new nautical skills, admire boats build by WoodenBoat readers. Plus, family boat-building event, Lance Lee tribute dinner, toy boatbuilding for wee ones and much more. June 28-30 at Mystic Seaport, 75 Greenmanville Ave., Mystic. $30 ($20 ages 6-17). 207-359-4651, thewoodenboatshow. com.
FAMILY EVENTS Each Tuesday the Yale Astronomy Department hosts a Planetarium Show. Weather permitting there is also public viewing of planets, nebulae, star clusters and whatever happens to be interesting in the sky. Viewable celestial objects change seasonally. 7 & 8 p.m. Tuesdays at Leitner Family Observatory, 355 Prospect St., New Haven. Free. cobb@astro.yale. edu, astro.yale.edu. Philatelists unite! Young people ages eight to 15 are invited to join the Hagaman Library’s monthly (first Saturdays) Stamp Club. In addition to learning about stamps, attendees learn a lot of history and many other fascinating things from club leader and World War II veteran Judge Anthony DeMayo. 10 a.m. June 1, July 6 at Hagaman Memorial Library, 227 Main St., East Haven. Free. Registration. 203-468-3890, hagamanlibrary. info. Creating Readers Saturdays at 2 Program. A fun, interactive program that engages young readers by bringing books to life using theater, dance and music. Each family that attends NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
A native of Burkina Faso, choreographer and performer Souleymane Badolo will demonstrate and discuss his work July 23 at Wesleyan.
making New Haven friendlier and more accessible to cyclists and pedestrians. 7 p.m. June 10, July 8 at City Hall Meeting Rm. 2, 165 Church St., New Haven. Free. elmcitycycling.org.
Golf Tee off in the 17th annual Greater Valley Chamber Golf Classic. Format is four-person scramble, with awards for the lowgross team, longest drive, straightest drive, closest to the pin, hole in one and more. Individuals and teams are welcome! Registration includes 18 holes of golf, cart, lunch and dinner. 11 a.m. (12:30 shotgun start) June 24 at Brownson C.C., 15 Soundview Ave., Huntington. $195. 203-925-4981, greatervalleychamber.com. Not too soon to register for the West Haven Chamber of Commerce’s 13th annual Golf Tournament. Prizes awarded to the top three teams in the four-player scramble format. Plus, hole-in-one contest on par-threes, longest-drive, closest-to-pin competitions. 8 a.m. July 8 at Oak Lane C.C., 1027 Racebrook Rd., Woodbridge. $140. 203-933-1500, info@westhavenchamber.com.
Road Races/Triathlons If it’s the Fourth of July it must be time for the Independence Day 5000 (as in meters, meaning 5K), hosted by the Milford Road Runners (motto: “10K Every Day — Well, Almost”). 9 a.m. July 4 at Foran High School, 80 Foran Dr., Milford. $25 (free kids fun run). Runbob48@aol.com. receives a copy of that week’s book to take home. 2 p.m. Saturdays at Connecticut Children’s Museum, 22 Wall St., New Haven. $5. 203-562-5437, childrensbuilding.org. The town of Hamden gets an early start on Independence Day with a spectacular display of Fireworks! 7:30 p.m. (fireworks begin after dusk) June 28 at Meadowbrook Park, 2761 Dixwell Ave., Hamden. Free. 203-287-2546, hamdenartscommission.org. The 2013 West River Water Festival combines family fun with educational activities. Free canoe rides, touch tanks, water games, river walks, exhibits, more. 1-4 p.m. July 13 at West River Memorial Park West, E.T. Grasso Blvd., New Haven. Free. 203-5581300, wrwpartnership.webs.com.
MIND, BODY & SOUL Alan Bitker leads weekly Library Yoga classes suitable for all levels. Walk-ins welcome. Bring a yoga mat. 1-2 p.m. Wednesdays at New Haven Free Public Library, 133 Elm St., New Haven. $5. 203-946-8835. Led by Nelie Doak, Yoga promotes a deep sense of physical, mental and emotional well-being. Classes are designed to help cultivate breath and body awareness, improve flexibility, strengthen and tone muscles, detoxify the body and soothe the spirit. All levels welcome. Bring a yoga mat. 5-6:30 p.m. Fridays at Blackstone Library, 758 Main St., Branford. $10. 203-488-1441, ext. 313, yogidoakie@earthlink.net or events@blackstone. lioninc.org, blackstone.lioninc.org.
NATURAL HISTORY The spring of 2013 marks the Return of the 17-Year Cicadas! Nymphs of this common species emerged in late May — for the first time since 1996 — from colonies in forested regions in south-central Connecticut. The adult insects are seen and heard throughout June. This Peabody exhibition offers an indepth look at this unusual creature, including information on the biology, life cycle and range of the noisy insect. Visitors will discover the differences between periodical cicadas and annual cicadas, and learn about the environmental effects of periodical cicadas. Through September 3 at Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, 170 Whitney Ave., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, noon-5 p.m. Sun. $9 ($8 seniors, $5 children). 203-4325050, peabody.yale.edu. Echoes of Egypt: Conjuring the Land of the Pharaohs will take visitors on a journey through 2,000 years of fascination with ancient Egypt, the land of the pharaohs. Highlights include an examination of the meaning and changing uses of hieroglyphs, together with an exploration of Egyptosophy, the use of the magic and religious symbolism of ancient Egypt in later cultures. And of course no display on Egypt would be complete
without mummies, here treated not as oddities but explained as examples of the Egyptian fascination with regeneration through decay. A centerpiece will be a diorama showing a scene from a 19th-century “mummy unwrapping” event in Philadelphia, complete with a mummy from the Barnum Museum and an invitation from the American Antiquarian Society. Through January 4 at Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, 170 Whitney Ave., New Haven. Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, noon-5 p.m. Sun. $9 ($8 seniors, $5 children). 203-432-5050, peabody.yale.edu.
SPORTS/RECREATION Spectator Sports It’s Connecticut largest spectator sporting event and only PGA tour stop — the Travelers Championship, a 72-hole stroke play event featuring 156 players competing for a $6 million purse (winner’s share $1.08 million). It’s for a good cause: the tourney is the primary fundraising event of the Greater Hartford Community Foundation. June 17-18 (practice rounds) June 19 (Pro-Am) June 20-23 (tourney) at TPC River Highlands, 1 Golf Club Rd., Cromwell. General admission at gate $39 ($28 practice/Pro-Am rounds); $29/$24 over 60; under 16 free with ticketed adult. 860-502-6800, travelerschampionship.com.
Cycling Elm City Cycling organizes Lulu’s Ride, weekly two- to four-hour rides for all levels (17-19 mph average). Cyclists leave at 10 a.m. from Lulu’s European Café as a single group; no one is dropped. 10 a.m. Sundays at Lulu’s European Café, 49 Cottage St., New Haven. Free. 203-773-9288, elmcitycycling.org. The Little Lulu (LL) is an alternative to the long-standing Sunday morning training ride. The route is usually 20-30 miles in length and the ride is no-drop, meaning that the group waits at hilltops and turns so that no rider is left behind. The LL is an opportunity for cyclists to get accustomed to riding in groups. Riders should come prepared with materials (tubes, tools, pumps and/or CO2 inflators) to repair flats. 10 a.m. Sundays at Lulu’s European Café, 49 Cottage St., New Haven. Free. 203-7739288, paulproulx@sbcglobal.net, elmcitycycling.org. Tuesday Night Canal Rides. Medium-paced rides up the Farmington Canal into New Haven. May split into two groups based on riders’ speed but no one will be left behind to ride alone. Lights are essential. 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays at Café Romeo, 534 Orange St., New Haven. Free. william.v.kurtz@gmail.com. Elm City Cycling monthly meeting occurs on the second Monday. ECC is a non-profit organization of cycling advocates who meet to discuss biking issues in New Haven. Dedicated to
Dip your toe into the world of triathlons with the 26th annual, USAT-sanctioned Pat Griskus Sprint Triathlon — a half-mile swim in spring-fed Lake Quassapaug, 10-mile bike around the lake finishing with a 5K out-and-back run. 6 p.m. July 10 at Quassy Amusement Park, 2132 Middlebury Rd., Middlebury. $70 USAT members, $80 others. 860-868-0540, patgriskustri.com. It sounds so romantic — and it is! The Trumbull Sunset Run is a 5K sponsored by the Trumbull Rotary Club. 6:45 p.m. July 26 at Twin Brooks Park, Trumbull. $20 ($15 18 and under) advance, $25 race day. 203-268-5934. It’s the seventh annual Walnut Beach Ice Cream Run 5K, which promises free ice cream cones to all runners at the conclusion of the race. 8:30 a.m. August 4 at Walnut Beach, 113 East Broadway, Milford. $25 (free kids fun run). 203-878-7738, hitekracing.com/walnutbeach5k. Please send CALENDAR information to CALENDAR@conntact. com no later than six weeks preceding calendar month of event. Please include date, time, location, event description, cost and contact information. Photographs must be at least 300 dpi resolution and are published at discretion of NEW HAVEN magazine.
CRUISE THE THIMBLE ISLANDS
Board the Volsunga IV for a 45 minute relaxing, narrated tour around the Thimble Islands with Captain Bob Milne Daily May - October, except Mondays
INFO: 203-481-3345 THIMBLEISLANDS.COM new haven
61
WOR D S of M O UT H
Anything but Ordinary: (L-r) Manager Ben Zemke and co-owners Tom Sobocinski, Tim Cabral, Jason Sobocinski and Mike Farber.
Photographs: Lisa Wilder
th 15
A n n i ve r s a
ry
Join Chef Silvio in Celebrating 15 Years of Proudly Serving his Award-Winning Classic
Mediterranean Style Cuisine
At Cafe Allegre
Open for Lunch & Dinner (203) 245-7773
for the memories Banquets Gift Cards
Platters To Go Special Events
725 Boston Post Road, Madison, CT
cafeallegre.com Corporate & Private Parties | Gift CertiďŹ cates
62 June/July 2013
Â&#x2039; >VVZ[LY :[ Â&#x2039; consiglios.com NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
EDITOR’S PICK: And once you get past the luxe details and retro uniforms, Ordinary offers some damn fine food and excellent service.
Ordinary By Liese Klein
H
ow much irony can one city take? That’s the question that seems to be popping up around Ordinary, a new bar downtown. Some New Haven imbibers seem to be taking umbrage that this new taphouse is anything but ordinary, more a hipster speakeasy than a workingman’s pub. But really, can’t we all just have a drink and get along? First of all, how could a bar in the former Richter’s location in the Taft, mere yards from the Yale campus, pretend to proletarian roots? The closest working people to this storefront are hefting polysyllabic words and literary allusions, not bricks and shovels.
Ordinary’s most decadent indulgence is space — soaring ceilings painted white that feel as high as Yale’s Harkness Tower. It’s a nice change from the clamorous caves that house most downtown watering holes and amenable to conversation. Finely carved woodwork and tiles telling the story of New Haven add to a sophisticated yet casual atmosphere capable of impressing even the most jaded out-of-town guest. In addition to a short but well-curated list of draft beers ($6), Ordinary features alluring cocktails showcasing of-the-moment flavor combinations and ingredients. The Bees Knees ($9) blended gin, lemon juice and honey to pleasing effect, the bright citrus balancing the herbal liquor with just a hint of sweetness. The Calvados Sidecar ($11) delivered apple flavor with a boozy punch of brandy.
You Are Invited... FREE Tastings Every Friday 5-8 pm 181 Crown Street New Haven
203.772.1944
THANKS FOR VOTING US
BEST WINE SHOP
Since 2001!
2nd location: 378 Whitney Ave.
203.865.4845
www.thewinethief.com
Don’t let the cocktail menu distract you from the pies — small but surprisingly filling servings of meat and veg in top-notch crusts. Tomato and spice added sweetness to a pork pie that was substantial enough for dinner and tasty enough to eat daily. Cheese played a starring role in the spinach and artichoke pie ($9), gooey and delicious. Also stellar was the three-cheese tasting plate ($12) featuring gin cherry jam, excellent crispbreads and a scattering of nuts and dried fruit. The prices are fair for the quality of the fare. But most appreciated by this New Haven veteran was the Ordinary’s obvious investment in quality servers — young people who seem to actually want to help customers instead of strike poses and chat with their friends. What city and what century was I in again? Ordinary offers a stylish and friendly alternative to the downtown scene — and at that, it’s anything but ordinary. Ordinary, 990 Chapel St., New Haven (203-907-0238).
A Family & Yale Tradition for More than Forty Years ~ Established 1969 ~
Serving Lunch • Dinner • Late Night Steaks - Seafood - Chicken - Wings - Subs Milkshakes - Pasta - Burgers - Gyros Souvlaki - Salads - Ice Cream Selection of Beer and Wines
Voted One of the Best Places for Greek Food 288 York Street New Haven
203-787-7471 203-787-7472 Yorksidepizza.com
Friend us: Facebook.com/yorkside
new haven
63
JUST A TASTE: bought the recipe and revived the brand in its former storefront on Grove Street. La Cuisine owner Ben Bloom has launched his New Haven outpost with a charming eatery perfect for a quality lunch or breakfast near downtown.
La Cuisine Café
Steps from the bustling Grove-Church intersection, La Cuisine Café greets visitors with a soothing yellow-and-green décor and friendly and solicitous wait staff. Everything except pastries is made to order, so expect a few minutes of waiting at one of the café tables, or better yet, eat in.
By Liese Klein
A
loaf of Judie’s French peasant bread is a little like the city of New Haven — not the most glamorous from the outside but concealing uncounted riches within. Its dull, pitted crust partly shrouded in plain white paper, a Judie’s loaf may not be sexiest bread on the rack, but slice open that loaf at home and you get an unmatched salty, rich flavor and tender crumb. It’s good only for a few days but the finest canvas possible for fresh tomatoes and fine cheese. Fans of Judie’s bread were given a great gift earlier this year when La Cuisine of Branford
Celebrating 15 Years!
For breakfast, the Breakfast Buddy egg sandwich ($4) is a hearty start to the day, with fresh ingredients and melting cheese that far outshines the franchise offerings down the block. Quality coffee and tea are also offered with far less attitude than the trendier cafés nearby. But save some room for the beauties behind the glass at the counter: the butter croissant ($2.25) ranks among the city’s best, with a salty-sweet dairy tang and crisp exterior. Cheese Danish lovers will enjoy the barely sweet filling and glazed perfection of the La Cuisine version, though some nearby purveyors offer delectable versions of their own. Basically,
Live
pastry connoisseurs should consider finding an apartment near the corner of Grove and Church. For lunch, La Cuisine pulls out the stops with heaping portions of sandwiches and sides. A chicken sandwich ($8.95) impressed with complex flavors of grilled breast meat, roasted tomato and pesto on a flavorful roll. The coleslaw on the side balanced crunch, creaminess and sweetness for the perfect accent dish. Less successful was the steak and cheese sandwich ($8.50), nicely spicy but served in an overly soft sesame bun that collapsed in mid-bite. This diner prefers to eat her lunch, not wear it home. Burgers, salads and vegetarian options like a curried tempeh wrap are also offered, all in the $8 range and accompanied by ample sides. Best of all, on your way out you can pick up a loaf of Judie’s French peasant bread, still in its classic white bag with a yellow and black label. Enjoy a slice and savor this New Haven institution, brought back to life just in time for summer’s bounty. La Cuisine Café, 63 Grove St., New Haven (203-777-6300).
Enjoy the Best Seafood on the Shoreline!
Entertainment in our Lounge
Indian Head Inn
Since 1968
Seafood at its Best!
Legendary Lobsters, Steaks & Seafood Come visit us today to see what everybody is talking about!
DECK NOW O OPEN! PEN! with LIVE ENTER ENTERTAINMENT RTAINMENT
Only $29.95!
We invite you to an upscale yet comfortable dining experience. Enjoy the best brunch on the shoreline and discover why we’ve won multiple awards for our Àne Italian cuisine.
Voted BEST Seafood Restaurant on the Shoreline and BEST Restaurant with Outdoor Dining!
Serving Lunch & Dinner Private Room for all Occasions
Join Us at the Boat Bar & Large Deck for LIVE Entertainment Wed-Thurs-Fri-Sun
Rehearsal Dinners Showers – Birthdays....
✩✩✩
lalunact.com Two locations for your dining experience 168 North Main Street Branford (203) 483-9995 64 June/July 2013
9 Whitehall Avenue Mystic (860) 536-6300
* *Lobster Dinner fo Two Tuesdays* for
Lunch & Dinner • 7 Days Credit Cards Accepted
Along Scenic Rt. 146 Worth the drive from anywhere! 205 South Montowese St., Branford
(Only 15 Minutes from Yale)
LennysNow.com • 203-488-1500 NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Andrea Holyst of La Cuisine, a charming eatery amid the bustle of downtown New Haven.
A Celebration of Culture, Taste and Atmosphere A dining experience designed to captivate your senses Lunch 11-4 Dinner 4-10 pm & Take Out
27 Temple Street, New Haven 203.562.8844 Kudetanewhaven.com
kudetanewhaven@gmail.com
Happy Hour M-F 3- 630
Cozy Lounge
Classic New England Fare Seafood Ultimate Steaks, Ribs & Chops • Chicken • Pasta Irresistible & Mouth Watering Appetizers & Desserts
Large Room Available for Private Parties Catering Available on & off-premise Trays to go
Photo:Lisa Wilder
2548 Boston Post Road (Rt. 1) Guilford • 203-453-0774
Open 7 Days Lunch & Dinner Specials
maritimegrill.net
Paul DeFransesco, Owner/Operator Since 2000
Open Year Round
Banquet Rooms Catering Take out
Daily Lunch & Dinner Kids Menu Traditional Irish Music Two Outdoor Patios
PlaywrightIrishPub.com tII ish hP b com hP 203-287-2401 1232 Whitney Avenue • Hamden
On Beautiful Long Island Sound Best family value on the shore *SHTZ 6`Z[LYZ :LHMVVK 7SH[[LYZ 3VIZ[LY 9VSSZ )\YNLYZ :HSHKZ 38 Ocean Ave, West Haven 203-932-0440
Friend us on Facebook for specials
Appetizers Salads Fajitas Quesadillas Fine Tequila Fresh Margaritas
Large Deck Overlooking Sleeping Giant Golf Course “a great selection of tequilas and craft beers”
3931 Whitney Ave., Hamden 203-230-4640
AuntChilada.com new haven
65
YHOTT IS Hot for Train Lovers By SU By SUSAN E. CORNELL
ere you in love with trains as a child? Are you still captivated by one of the most powerful inventions ever? Is traveling aboard the Orient Express on your bucket list? Or are you perhaps a closet Thomas the Tank Engine fan?
W
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, the Valley Railroad Company, home of the Essex Steam Train and Riverboat, is the place to fulfill your dreams. This place isn’t just for kids and tourists; there’s a piece that caters to those of us who have always wondered what it is like to actually be the railroad engineer, even if it’s only for a few hours, and it’s called the Your Hand on the Throttle (YHOTT). This once-in-a-lifetime experience begins with instruction on safety, the basics of locomotive theory and operation, and the basics of the controls participants will be responsible for on the line. Engineers-to-be are given home study materials, which are a compilation of manuals from the 1920s to 1930s. Part of running a locomotive entails understanding how the various components function together. The training program manual covers everything from signals to the insides of the steam locomotive to points on engine operation.
‘Your Hand on the Throttle’ lets you play engineer 66 June/July 2013
Following a one-hour class held in a dining car, participants join with crewmembers aboard a steam engine and embark on a journey from Essex through Deep River and onto Chester and then return to Essex, all while receiving additional training. The 12-mile right-of-way, a/k/a the Connecticut Valley Railroad State Park, happens to be the only official state park that moves. The company leases the linear state park from the state of Connecticut, and this just might be the best scenery in the Connecticut River Valley. These fun and educational classes are limited to four persons, and only one student operates the locomotive on each trip. The cost for this incredibly unusual opportunity is $500. Contact Essex Steam Train & Riverboat (essexsteamtrain. com, 860-767-0103) for additional details and to register. NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM
Connecticut Lighting Centers... Your
Ceiling Fan Headquarters See the NEW CASABLANCA. . . New Fans, New Blades, New Technology. Academy (avail. in 52” or 60”) - Brushed Nickel finish.
Over 150 Fans on Display for Indoor or Outdoor Casablanca’s # 1 Selling Fan Panama (avail. in 52” or 60”) Brushed Cocoa finish. UL damp rated. See the vast array of Panama fans in both pull chain and universal electronic control.
HARTFORD 860-249-7631 160 BRAINARD RD (I-91• EXIT 27) www.CTlighting.com
SOUTHINGTON 860-621-7585 RT 10 WAL-MART PLAZA (I-84 • EXIT 32) Open 7 Days & 5 Nights
Charthouse (avail. in 52” or 60”) Cottage White finish. UL damp rated.
no interest * No interest if paid within 6 months. See store for details.
www.myRLG.com Across the street from Connecticut Lighting Centers
Don’t Just Earn Your Degree. Experience It. Whether you plan to study full-time or part-time, you can earn your degree by attending three terms per year. Trimesters begin in September, January, and April.
The Graduate School offers programs in: Bioinformatics Business Administration (MBA) Cellular & Molecular Biology Community Psychology Computer Science Criminal Justice* Education Electrical Engineering Emergency Management Engineering & Operations Management Environmental Engineering
Environmental Science Executive MBA Fire Science Forensic Psychology Forensic Science Geographical Information Systems Health Care Administration Human Nutrition Industrial Engineering Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Instructional Technologies and Digital Media Literacy, Sixth Year Certificate Labor Relations Lean-Six Sigma Management of Sports Industries* Mechanical Engineering National Security Public Administration Taxation *Also available online
®
UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAVEN 300 Boston Post Road West Haven, CT 06516 www.newhaven.edu/grad (203) 931-2938 gradinfo@newhaven.edu
new haven
67