YES! Weekly - May 3, 2023

CURTAIN CALL

GREENSBORO SYMPHONY MAESTRO GIVES FAREWELL PERFORMANCE

Cypress Trails

Trails and Ales!

May 13th 4-10pm

A NEW event with twinkling forest trails, amazing music, breweries, vendors, a kid zone and more!

Adults $10 | Children $5

Music

Provided By Will Easter

Momma Molasses

CURTAIN CALL

“I can’t wait to make music with Bran,” said violinist and conductor Dmitry Sitkovetsky, whose May 11 performance with Branford Marsalis at the Tanger Center will mark his farewell as music director of the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra.

5500 Adams Farm Lane Suite 204 Greensboro, NC 27407 O ce 336-316-1231 Fax 336-316-1930

Publisher CHARLES A. WOMACK III publisher@yesweekly.com

EDITORIAL

Editor CHANEL DAVIS chanel@yesweekly.com

YES! Writers IAN MCDOWELL MARK BURGER

KATEI CRANFORD

JIM LONGWORTH NAIMA SAID DALIA RAZO LYNN FELDER

cypresstrailsevents.com

157 Interstate Way Elkin, NC

SUPPORT ADVERTISERSNEWSPAPER! IN THIS

It’s because of them that we are able to bring you arts and entertainment from around the Triad every week!

4 MJ’s, according to the restaurant website, “is a locally family owned and operated restaurant inspired and influenced by FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND GOOD FOOD.

6 A casual conversation over dinner with friends at the Full Moon Oyster Bar in Jamestown has turned into a part-time business for VIRGINIA WASHBURN

ROTHERMEL

7 The RiverRun International Film Festival today announced the JURY AWARDS FOR THE 2023 FESTIVAL. This year’s festival ran April 13-22 and offered both in-person and virtual screenings.

8 The OLD TOWN FILM SERIES returns with a pair of free screenings, but with a slight alteration: Screenings will now take place on the first and third Thursday of each month, instead of the first and third Tuesday of each month.

10 To recap, DOMINION FILED SUIT AGAINST FOX for broadcasting numerous lies about the integrity and accuracy of

DVS tabulations during the 2020 Presidential election.

12 New Orleans has rarely seemed less appealing or inviting than in RENFIELD, A GRUESOME HORROR COMEDY starring Nicholas Hoult as the eponymous, bug-eating “familiar” of that legendary bloodsucker Count Dracula, who is here essayed with customarily gonzo gusto by Nicolas Cage.

18 Video released by the Greensboro Police depicts Corporal Mathew Sletten FATALLY FIRING at the vehicle driven by 17-year Nasanto Crenshaw rather than taking evasive action. That is not what the U.S. Department of Justice recommends an officer do.

20 Today, four-time GRAMMY® awardwinning and diamond-certified rock legends AEROSMITH HAVE ANNOUNCED THEIR FINAL OUTING – PEACE OUT™ –with special guest The Black Crowes.

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We at YES! Weekly realize that the interest of our readers goes well beyond the boundaries of the Piedmont Triad. Therefore we are dedicated to informing and entertaining with thought-provoking, debate-spurring, in-depth investigative news stories and features of local, national and international scope, and opinion grounded in reason, as well as providing the most comprehensive entertainment and arts coverage in the Triad. YES! Weekly welcomes submissions of all kinds. Efforts will be made to return those with a self-addressed stamped envelope; however YES! Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. YES! Weekly is published every Wednesday by Womack Newspapers, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free, all additional copies are $1.00. Copyright 2023 Womack Newspapers, Inc.

PLAN YOUR NEXT NIGHT OUT!

With over 100 vibrant arts organizations across Guilford County, there is always something creative to do. Date night or family fun, there is something for everyone. Bookmark the ACGG community arts calendar and start planning your art-filled excursion.

Chow Down with John Batchelor at MJ’s

BY JOHN BATCHELOR

MJ’s, according to the restaurant website, “is a locally family owned and operated restaurant inspired and influenced by family, friends, and good food. Tad and Rachel Engstrom are the owners. The restaurant is named after their daughters, Madelyn and Julianna. Tad is the Executive Chef.”

Chef Tad Engstrom trained at the New England Culinary Institute. He was sous Chef at 223 South Elm and Executive Chef for Sweet Basil’s before opening MJ’s in 2011. He describes his style as “Southern Cuisine with French influences,” certainly a good combination in my estimation.

A Guilford College neighborhood home has been opened up inside to create a dining room on the right, with additional seating in an alcove to the rear. Salmon walls frame an open fireplace. On the other side of the room, original art decorates beige walls. White tablecloths adorn the tables. The bar area to the left of the entryway has established a popular following. No matter the loca-

tion of your seating, residual noise is low enough to allow conversation — a rare and most welcome feature. Patio seating, illuminated with tiny overhead lights, is especially attractive this time of year.

The wine list contains mostly unfamiliar selections, at least to me, but when a server recognized that I was not enamored with my selection, she insisted on replacing it, and I was only charged for the lower-priced original. No harm, no foul, no risk. My wife has been engaging in bar sampling recently, and MJ’s earned special praise in this regard. The Twisted Angel Cosmo is prepared with Grey Goose vodka, a touch of Domaine de Canton liqueur, plus lime and cranberry juices.

I have always considered MJ’s a very good restaurant. But meals this year have been noticeably better than in the past. My most recent visit took place during Furniture Market. In spite of a packed house, service remained well paced and attentive on this as well as previous occasions.

Bread (no extra charge) is crusty and flavorful, joined by softened butter and

good quality herbed olive oil.

She Crab Soup drew memories of The White Heron in Myrtle Beach, one of my absolute favorites from long ago. It’s rich and creamy, oozing the flavor of fresh lump crabmeat. A Charleston-influenced recipe, it bears subtle nuances of onions, sherry, and paprika.

We also rated Shrimp Tacos in the highest echelon, a function primarily of the flavor and texture of the abundant shrimp, enhanced with sesame slaw, ponzu sauce, and spicy aioli, all presented on a bed of fresh arugula, which adds a kick of its own.

Fried Calamari is noteworthy for its light, crusty exterior and overall tender texture, sharpened with caper aioli. This also ranked in the upper category, relative to similar preparations in other Triad restaurants.

Poutine is one of this restaurant’s signature items. I did not order it on these most recent evenings, but I have had it in the past. It’s a heavy concoction of French fries covered with cheese curds and onion gravy — to me, a hearty, wintry dish.

About half the entrée section of the

menu is devoted to seafoods. Blackened Salmon gets a more elaborate treatment than the name implies. It’s covered with lump crabmeat and ladled with beurre blanc sauce, layering rich flavor dimensions over the mildly spicy accent of the blackening spices. The assembly is presented over Hoppin’ John rice with asparagus.

Scallops are large, seared just-righttender, scattered with bits of crisp prosciutto. This elevates the usually crude bacon-wrapped scallops conception up several notches while retaining those perennially popular flavors. A lush lemonbutter sauce rounds out the preparation. Mushroom risotto provides a creamy-rich host, flanked by asparagus. This kitchen earns particular praise for trimming o the stalky ends of that vegetable.

Shrimp and Grits is such a popular dish, it’s almost mandatory in area restaurants. MJ’s version is exceptional, with plenty of large, tender examples of the main ingredient, plus chunks of andouille sausage, along with onions and spinach, over Coldwater Creek Farms creamy grits, all bathed in tomato gravy. Luscious!

“Fish of the day” on one occasion was

Ribeye Shrimp and Grits

Cosmo Blackened Salmon

Grouper Bread

Flounder

She Crab Soup

flounder, the other time grouper, in each case imminently fresh and moist, panseared. The fish is plated over coconut rice — a treat in its own right, plus sesame slaw, all swirled with spicy sriracha aioli and ponzu sauce, scattered with black sesame seeds. Visually striking and a real flavor treat.

Meat seekers should have no fear of neglect here, however. A Ribeye turned out to be large enough to feed me and my wife with leftovers the next night. And it’s superior quality — Certified Angus Beef, cooked just as ordered, resting in bordelaise sauce. It comes with mashed potatoes blended with crème fraiche, plus baby spinach lightly flavored with garlic.

Braised Short Ribs would be my favorite, though, due to the meat’s exquisite tenderness, deepened with bordelaise sauce and aged balsamic vinegar. This usually comes with crispy brussels sprouts, but the accommodating kitchen provided asparagus for a guest, on request.

We were fortunate to have friends who were willing to share desserts. Tiramisu Cake is so named because it has two lay-

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ers, each redolent of custard and co ee flavors. Key Lime Pie is pleasantly tart. Easily worth the calories!

I need to go back to MJ’s more often! !

JOHN BATCHELOR has been writing about eating and drinking since 1981. Over a thousand of his articles have been published. He is also author of two travel/cookbooks: Chefs of the Coast: Restaurants and Recipes from the North Carolina Coast, and Chefs of the Mountains: Restaurants and Recipes from Western North Carolina. Contact him at john.e.batchelor@gmail. com or see his blog, johnbatchelordiningandtravel. blogspot.com.

WANNA go?

MJ’s 620 Dolley Madison Rd. Greensboro, NC 27410 mjs620.com

Hours: 5-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday

Appetizers: $13-$15

Salads: $6-$10

Soups: $6-$10

Entrees: $28-$45

Desserts: $7-$9

Most recent visit: April 22

Tiramisu Cake

Scallops

Shrimp Tacos

Turning imperfection into perfectly beautiful

BY NORMA B DENNIS | ndworddesign@gmail.com

Acasual conversation over dinner with friends at the Full Moon Oyster Bar in Jamestown has turned into a parttime business for Virginia Washburn Rothermel. Her husband had ordered oysters and a discussion about crafts made from oyster shells ensued.

Rothermel had seen items made from oyster shells that, although pretty, were in her estimation quite pricey.

“I wanted to try making something and brought my husband’s shells home,” she said.

Online research was key to learning how to thoroughly clean the shells as well as ways to decorate and use them.

“Oysters are bottom-feeders so the shells can be full of bacteria. If not cleaned well they could begin to smell,” Rothermel said. “I soak them in a bleach solution for 48 hours, twice the recommended time. I then wash the shells with soap and water and allow them to air dry. The whole process takes about two and a half days.”

Once the shells are cleaned, she uses pictures from old books, magazines, napkins, the internet and even photographs to decorate the shells, coating them with two layers of a waterproof sealer to make them durable. She s ometimes uses a gold leaf pen to put a border on the shells’ outer edges.

Rothermel admits creating the shells has been a learn-as-you-go process. She has generated social media friends with similar interests who share ideas and product suggestions.

After posting some of her shells on social media in November 2021, her business, which she calls Perfectly Imperfect By Va (short for Virginia), started to grow.

“When deciding on a name, I looked at the shells and they are so irregular with bumps and different shapes,” Rothermel said. “They are not perfect, just like us. We are perfectly imperfect, that is how God made us. The name just fit.”

People began to message Rothermel and ask for special shells incorporating pictures of their pets and other photos. She started showing her designs at pop-ups and vendor markets as well as placing some in shops.

Last September, Rothermel donated shells to help with Childhood Cancer

Awareness and Chad Tucker contacted her to arrange an interview for a segment of Roy’s Folks.

“After that my phone began to ring like crazy,” Rothermel said. “One lady has purchased about 500 shells from me.”

In addition to her individual shell designs, Rothermel has used some of them to create wreaths, prayer boxes, picture frames, Nativity sets and North Carolina maps.

“My favorite thing is to do custom shells with pictures or ideas that a customer has. I am currently making 80 place cards for a wedding reception in Wilmington. The farthest I have sent shells is California. People from other countries have looked at my website, but I have not sent anything out of the States yet. I am open to doing that.”

Since the popularity of her shells has increased, her husband Bill has begun to help with the process. He cleans the shells and drills holes in the ones Rothermel plans to use as ornaments. She sells her finished shells for $10 apiece, sometimes more for custom orders, The time Rothermel invests in her craft varies depending on the number of orders she has and if she has a show pending.

“Working on the shells is relaxing,” she said. “It is therapy to me. “I like to sit in my craft room with no television

or music and just focus on a project or ideas for more designs.”

Rothermel’s background is actually science, not art. With a degree in nursing, she worked at Hospice Home in High Point for years before beginning to teach health science in Randolph County in 2011. She currently teaches health science in grades 9-12 at Ragsdale High School.

“A friend once told me I had a flair for decorating, but I have never been into crafts,” she said. “I say that I cannot

draw a stick man, but designing the shells is not painting, it’s decoupage.”

Although she has made, sold and gifted thousands of shells, she still has the first shell she made. It is a reminder of how she started.

“(Creating shells) is my retirement plan,” said Rothermel with a smile.

To see examples of Rothermel’s work, visit her website at perfectlyimperfectbyva.com. You can contact her at 336-689-4599 or perfectlyimperfectbyva@gmail.com. !

Virginia Washburn Rothermel creates perfectly artful designs from inperfect oyster shells.

A variety of shells and designs were used to create this large pineapple

Shells turned in the opposite direction are sometimes used as bases for other decorated shells.

RiverRun Announces 2023 Awards

in a Documentary Feature: Curren Sheldon for King Coal

The RiverRun International Film Festival today announced the Jury Awards for the 2023 Festival. This year’s festival ran April 13-22 and o ered both in-person and virtual screenings. The festival this year presented 174 films representing 34 countries.

“I was thrilled with our film lineup this year, one of the best we have ever offered,” said Rob Davis, RiverRun Executive Director. “It was wonderful to welcome so many faces — both old and new — and host award ceremonies, wonderful panels, and of course so many film screenings. As always, RiverRun is grateful to all of the incredible people who make the Festival happen — our sta , volunteers, filmmakers, and, most importantly, all that come out to attend our screenings and events. We had a wonderful time celebrating out Silver Anniversary!”

RIVERRUN 2023 JURY AWARDS:

NARRATIVE FEATURES:

Best Narrative Feature: Trapped Balloon directed by Hiroyuki Miyagawa

Peter Brunette Award for Best Director: Zia Mohajerjasbi for Know Your Place

Best Screenplay of a Narrative Feature: Hiroyuki Miyagawa for Trapped Balloon

Best Cinematography in a Narrative Feature: Kamei Yoshinori for Trapped Balloon

Best Performance in a Narrative Feature: Mashiro Higashide in Trapped Balloon

Special Jury Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance: Jacky Jung in B-Side: For Taylor

Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble: Know Your Place

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES:

Best Documentary Feature: Bad Press directed by Rebecca Landsberry-Baker & Joe Peeler

Best Director of a Documentary Feature: Jesse Rudoy for Dusty & Stones

Special Jury Award for Cinematography

NARRATIVE SHORTS:

Best Narrative Short: Cousins directed by Karina Dandashi

Best Student Narrative Short: Swim Captain directed by Christina Haley

Special Jury Award for Social Impact: Thursday directed by Bren Cukier

Special Jury Award for Best International Short Film: Three Grains of Salt directed by Ingrid Chikhaoui

DOCUMENTARY SHORTS (RiverRun is an Academy Award qualifying Festival for Documentary Shorts):

Best Documentary Short: Oasis directed by Justine Martin

Honorable Mention for Innovative Storytelling: Everything Wrong and Nowhere to Go directed by Sinda Agha

Special Jury Award: Breaking Silence directed by Amy Bench & Annie Silverstein

ANIMATED SHORTS (RiverRun is an Academy Award qualifying Festival for Animated Shorts):

Best Animated Short: The Record directed by Jonathan Laskar

Special Jury Award for Documentary

Animation: Europe by Bidon directed by Samuel Albaric & Thomas Trichet

Special Jury Award for Experimental

Animation: Ecce directed by Margherita Premuroso

KILPATRICK TOWNSEND AUDIENCE

CHOICE AWARD:

Go On, Be Brave directed by Brian Beckman & Miriam McSpadden

REEL SOUTH AWARD:

RiverRun is pleased to be a liated with Reel South. Reel South SHORTS, the digital hive of the PBS series Reel South, showcases the best in Southern shortform and is built on partnerships with the South’s regional film festivals. This year’s

PITCH FEST AWARDS:

The 12th annual RiverRun Pitch Fest was held with college students from four colleges from North Carolina pitching their documentary film projects to a panel of judges in hopes of winning cash prizes. First place was awarded to Types directed by Taylor Rogers from Wake Forest University. Second place was awarded to Print is Dead: A Documentary About the Decline of the Publishing Industry directed by Aiden Winter-Deely from University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

MASTER OF CINEMA AWARDS:

Karen Allen

Tom Schulman

SPARK AWARD:

Emily Harrold

SPONSORS

The sponsors of the RiverRun International Film Festival help sustain the organization’s mission to foster a greater appreciation of cinema and a deeper understanding of the many people, cultures, and perspectives of our world through regular interaction with great films and filmmakers. Festival sponsors include:

Title & Presenting Sponsors — Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, City of Winston-Salem, Millennium Fund, UNCSA

Marquee Sponsors — Forsyth County, Kilpatrick Townsend Attorneys at Law, Nelson Mullins, North Carolina Arts Council, PNC

The 2024 RiverRun International Film Festival will take place April 18-27, celebrating 26 years. !

THE RIVERRUN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL is a non-profit cultural organization dedicated to the role of cinema as a conduit of powerful ideas and diverse viewpoints. Founded in 1998, RiverRun is a competitive event that annually showcases new films from both established and emerging filmmakers around the world. Each spring, RiverRun screens new narrative, documentary, short, student and animated films, o ering both audience and jury prizes in competition categories.

MBE/WBE/DBE SUBCONTRACTORS & SUPPLIERS

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Project information may be obtained by contacting Norma George-Ferrara at estimating@morgan1.com or (865) 444-4626 Ext. 410.

Morgan Contracting, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Reel South Winner was I’m the Girl — The Story of a Photograph directed by Thomas Southerland.

Bad Press Trapped

PHOTOS COURTESY OF RIVERRUN

A change of days for the Old Town Film Series

The Old Town Film Series returns with a pair of free screenings, but with a slight alteration: Screenings will now take place on the first and third Thursday of each month, instead of the first and third Tuesday of each month.

This Thursday, writer/director

Aneesh Chaganty’s award-winning 2018 cyberthriller Searching will be screened, and May 18th marks the screening date for director Jon M. Chu’s award-winning romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians (also 2018). Both films are rated PG-13 and will be shown at 7 p.m. at the Old Town Neighborhood Center, 4550 Shattalon Drive, Winston-Salem. Admission is free and refreshments will be available for purchase during the screenings.

Michael DiVitto Kelly, the recreation

center supervisor of the Old Town Neighborhood Center, inaugurated the series in February with screenings of Green Book (2018) and The Great Debaters (2007) to commemorate Black History Month. Searching and Crazy Rich Asians were likewise selected to commemorate Asian Pacific Month.

Kelly had earlier hosted film programs when he worked for the Broward County Library System in South Florida and believed that a similar series would be successful in Winston-Salem. He opens each screening with a brief introduction, and afterward, there’s an informal discussion period.

“The Asian acting community has long been relegated to the sidelines by those in the film industry,” Kelly observed. “These two outstanding films are proof Hollywood is way past due. Searching is an innovative film using today’s technology to tell the story. John Cho, who is from South Korea, is terrific as the distraught father trying to locate his missing daughter. It’s a must-see for fans of intense mystery thrillers. It’s a great film. Crazy Rich

Local Business Spotlight

Asians is a comedy/ drama sporting a talented all-Asian cast. Everyone is superb, from lead actress Constance Wu to actress/ rapper Awkwafina. Directed by Jon M. Chu, I found Crazy Rich Asians to be absorbingly enjoyable from beginning to end. Both fit the bill for the May theme.”

Although he has not seen last year’s Everything Everywhere All at Once yet, its critical and financial reception — capped off by winning seven Academy Awards including Best Picture — is indicative of a rise in recognition for Asian filmmakers. The film reunited Crazy Rich Asians stars Michelle Yeoh, who won the Oscar for Best Actress, and Wu, who earned a nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Kelly believes — and hopes — it marked a turning point.

MAY 4

7 P.M. | PG-13

MAY 18 7 P.M. | PG-13

OLD TOWN NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER

4550 SHATTALON DRIVE

For more information, please contact michaelke@cityofws.org or 336.922.3561

“It’s 2023 and we’re walking about films that have a predominantly Asian cast,” he said. “I find it pathetic that it’s taken this long for Hollywood to figure this out — and they see themselves as the enlightened ones. I think that’s why independent films are so important. It’s all about the story, not if it will be a major blockbuster.”

Actually, Searching and Crazy Rich Asians both proved their mettle at the box office — and with critics. Searching , in which Cho desperately attempts to locate his missing daughter’s whereabouts by using her laptop computer, cost less than $1 million to make but grossed $75 million worldwide. Aisha Harris of the New York Times wrote “(T)he combination of clever concept reflecting the prevalence of screens in everyday life, and the pleasure of watching a typically underused Mr. Cho take on a meaty lead role make Searching a satisfying psychological thriller.”

Crazy Rich Asians , the adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s best-selling 2013 novel, stars Wu as a New York University professor who accompanies her boyfriend (Henry Golding) to Singapore

to attend a wedding, only to encounter criticism and scorn from his wealthy, tradition-minded family. In addition to Yeoh and Awkwafina, the cast includes Gemma Chan, Lisa Lu, Ken Jeong, and Jimmy O. Yang. The film earned Golden Globe nominations for Best Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy and Wu for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy, and the National Board of Review’s award for Best Ensemble. Crazy Rich Asians grossed a remarkable $175 million in the U.S. and Canada alone, making it the highest-grossing romantic comedy of the 2010s and one of the top 10 box-office hits of 2018.

For more information, call (336) 9223561 or e-mail michaelke@cityofws.org. !

See MARK BURGER’s reviews of current movies. © 2023, Mark Burger.

Mark Burger

ASIAN AMERICAN PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH

JUNE

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BY JULIANA REYES | Bookmarks

Bookmarks officially launched the third year of the Book with Purpose summer reading initiative on Saturday, April 29 during Independent Bookstore Day. The program exists to unite the Winston-Salem community in book discussions for all ages centered around one book. The 2023 book is Dear America by Jose Antonio Vargas.

“The tremendous success we’ve had with this program has been due to the collaborative spirit embodied by all participants in our community,” Bookmarks Executive Director, Jamie Rogers Southern, said. Previous years have focused on antiracism and destigmatizing mental health, resulting in dozens of collaborations, events, and thousands of books being donated.

Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen is a memoir by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas. In it, Vargas states “I was born in the Philippines. When I was twelve, my mother sent me to the United States to live with her parents. While applying for a driver’s permit, I found out my papers were fake.” Vargas describes his life in America as an undocumented citizen and how there is “no clear path to American citizenship” for him and an estimated 11 million others who live in the United States as undocumented immigrants. The book is available in an adult edition, a young reader’s edition (recommended for ages 10+), a Spanish language edition, a large print edition, and in audio.

Southern said, “We’re planning to discuss questions of identity and belonging, the meaning of citizenship, finding home, and what it means to be American in today’s world.” Southern continued, “As Jose says in his book, this isn’t about political sides. It’s about finding home and understanding.”

29 |

summer initiative.

Bookmarks plans to host programming throughout the summer, virtually and in-person, at the Bookmarks Bookstore and in partnership with dozens of organizations throughout the Winston-Salem community. The culminating event will be a free Keynote event with Jose Antonio Vargas at the 18th anniversary Festival of Books and Authors on Saturday, September 23.

“If we reach our fundraising goals, we will be able to donate more than 5,000 copies of Dear America to all ages of readers throughout WinstonSalem and Forsyth County,” Southern said.

Complete details of the Book with Purpose program can be found at www.bookmarksnc.org/BookwithPurpose

William Wolfram, piano (July 1) - Gil Shaham, violin (July 8)

Hélène Grimaud, piano (July 22) - Awadagin Pratt, piano (July 29)

easternmusicfestival.org

FOX Settles, but What’s the Point?

o begin with, I apologize to YES! readers for taking up valuable page space with this column. After all (and pardon the generalization), I doubt that any of you watch FOX News. Nevertheless, as both a print journalist and a broadcaster, I am compelled to comment on the recently resolved defamation suit involving Dominion Voting Systems and FOX.

To recap, Dominion filed suit against FOX for broadcasting numerous lies about the integrity and accuracy of DVS tabulations during the 2020 Presidential election. Though Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump by more than 7 million

Tvotes, FOX hosts like Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Ann Coulter told their viewers that the election had been stolen in part due to rigged vote counts by Dominion.

That FOX News and its on-air personalities defamed Dominion was never in question, but during pre-trial discovery, attorneys for Dominion learned that the talking heads at FOX had admitted privately that the election had not been stolen. It was also revealed that the reason for their duplicity was purely monetary. Murdoch did not want to lose viewers and revenue, and both would have happened had his News folks told the truth on air. At any rate, the damning and mounting evidence put FOX attorneys in a precarious position. Dominion was seeking $1.6 billion dollars in damages, and likely would have been awarded that amount by a jury, so FOX cut a deal to pay DVS $787 million dollars and avoid a lengthy trial. It was believed to be the largest such settlement in a defamation action, and it seemed

to send a warning to purveyors of fake news everywhere. Unfortunately, the victory was hollow for several reasons. First, because FOX News is not likely to alter its behavior. As Angelo Carusone, chairman of Media Matters for America, told CNN, “ My warning to everybody is FOX News is about to burn brighter and hotter as a result of this.”

Second, is the problem with transparency, or lack of it. We’ve all seen TV courtroom dramas in which a guilty party is offered a plea deal, but only if he agrees to publicly allocute to his crimes. Yet when the Dominion deal was negotiated, there was no requirement that FOX News personalities go on air and admit to having lied about DVS and the so-called rigged election. That means there’s no real closure in the FOX defamation case. In other words, gullible FOX viewers will never be told by their idols that the 2020 election was not stolen, thus the votes they cast in the future will continue to be based on lies.

Third, and most importantly, I’m concerned about the damage that FOX has already done, not so much to Dominion, but to our democracy. Donald Trump was a frequent call-in guest on FOX News programs, including leading up to the January 6 insurrection. Together, the former President and his lap dog anchorpersons spewed and reinforced “the Big Lie” to such an extent that they inspired and encouraged viewers to rise up and revolt in protest over the stolen election. Trump himself may eventually be indicted over his role in inciting thousands of violent insurrectionists to storm the Capitol in hopes of preventing the 2020 votes from being certified. But what of FOX News? Now that they have

admitted privately to defaming Dominion, why shouldn’t they be charged with aiding and abetting Trump’s failed attempt to overturn the election by obstructing the work of Congress? And what of the hundreds of injured police officers and of those who died as a result of the insurrection? Shouldn’t FOX News be charged as an accessory to those assaults?

Paying out $787 million dollars is chicken feed to Rupert Murdoch plus his insurance will cover part of it anyway. Nevertheless, it’s hardly a fitting punishment for the multiple and far-reaching offenses that FOX News has committed against the electorate. Perhaps then prosecutors will go out on a limb and charge Hannity, Carlson, and Coulter with personally perpetrating hate crimes. Or maybe the FCC will revoke the network’s license to broadcast. But don’t hold your breath that any substantive penalties will be meted out. Unfortunately, as it stands now, these despicable, lying personalities are going to get away with heinous behavior, which almost resulted in the overthrow of our government. They tried to steal something precious to us and we stopped them just in the nick of time. The question is, Will we be able to stop them again if there’s a next time? !

JIM LONGWORTH is the host of Triad Today, airing on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. on ABC45 (cable channel 7) and Sundays at 11 a.m. on WMYV (cable channel 15) and streaming on WFMY+.

Jim Longworth Longworth at Large

ew Orleans has rarely seemed less appealing or inviting than in Renfield , a gruesome horror comedy starring Nicholas Hoult as the eponymous, bug-eating “familiar” of that legendary bloodsucker Count Dracula, who is here essayed with customarily gonzo gusto by Nicolas Cage. Yet this truly awful film wastes Cage, who occupies not so much a secondary role as an incidental one, as well as other established talents. It’s a one-joke movie and the one joke isn’t funny.

Hoult’s Renfield narrates the film — all the better to cover up some glaring inconsistencies — as he recounts how he

Nfell under the sway of the Transylvanian count. The filmmakers have digitally superimposed images of Hoult and Cage over footage from the original 1931 version of Dracula . It’s a neat touch, but after that, it’s all downhill.

Having relocated to New Orleans after a previous last attempt to vanquish Dracula, Renfield procures victims for his demanding master while also attending support group sessions for people in toxic relationships. These scenes, such as they are, play like substandard sitcom schtick, only there’s never a punchline.

The film’s leading lady is Awkwafina, as police officer Rebecca Quincy. She first meets Renfield — and they don’t meet cute — when he single-handedly annihilates a team of gun-toting goons in a local nightclub. Rebecca is hellbent on bringing down the Lobo crime family, represented by matriarch Shoreh Aghdashloo (in dragon-lady mode) and her twitchy, irresponsible son (Ben Schwartz). Why is Rebecca so obsessed

with the Lobos? Because they killed her police-officer father.

Screenwriter Ryan Ridley, whose previous experience has primarily been in television ( Rick and Morty , Community ) leaves no cliché unexplored. His screenplay is based on producer Robert Kirkman’s “original idea,” which may be the biggest laugh in the entire movie because originality — like subtlety — is not on Renfield ’s agenda. The direction, by Chris McKay ( The LEGO Batman Movie ) is not incompetent, which is the nicest thing that can be said about it.

The slick action sequences, replete with geysers of blood, decapitations, and severed limbs, seem (heavily) influenced by Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) and the “vampire/gangster” notion — which comes into play very late in the game — was better handled in the 1992 John Landis film Innocent Blood . Neither of the earlier films were great, but in comparison to Renfield, they shine.

Hoult, who was so terrific in last year’s The Menu , seems a bit dazed here, and one can hardly blame him. He deserves better. This is also Awkwafina’s most awkward performance to date. She appears to go out of her way to make Rebecca abrasive and even unlikable. Indeed, Renfield is a film almost utterly bereft of likable or sympathetic characters.

There are also maddening lapses in logic, like how the police issue a citywide warning that Rebecca is a wanted

fugitive, yet shortly thereafter she is having (a bug-free) lunch with Renfield in an outdoor bistro in broad daylight, or how quickly she recovers from a gunshot wound to the shoulder. By that point, however, Renfield is a lost cause. No need for crucifixes or garlic or wooden stakes — Renfield is dead on arrival. !

See MARK BURGER’s reviews of current movies. © 2023, Mark Burger.

Mark Burger

Contributor

80 FOR BRADY (Paramount Home Entertainment): Executive producer Kyle Marvin’s award-winning, PG-13-rated feature directorial debut showcases the stellar quartet of Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno as lifelong friends who embark on a journey to attend Super Bowl LI and meet their hero, superstar New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (who plays himself), with Rob Corddry, Harry Hamlin, Bob Balaban, Glynn Turman, Sara Gilbert, Sally Kirkland, Patton Oswalt, Andy Richter, and Guy Fieri (as himself) on the sidelines, available on DVD ($25.99 retail) and Blu-ray ($30.99 retail), each boasting bonus features including deleted and extended scenes, and behindthe-scenes featurettes.

DEEP IMPACT (Paramount Home Entertainment): A 25th-anniversary 4K Ultra HD combo ($30.99 retail) of the award-winning, episodic 1998 sci-fi disaster saga in which Earth prepares for possible destruction when it is discovered that a giant comet is on a collision course. Well-made but ponderous, it’s basically a talky, hoary soap opera with (admittedly) terrific special e ects, and squanders a star-studded cast: Robert Duvall, Morgan Freeman (as the U.S. President), Vanessa Redgrave, Tea Leoni, Maximilian Schell, Elijah Wood, Leelee Sobieski, James Cromwell, Ron Eldard, Charles Martin Smith, Jon Favreau, Mary McCormack, Blair Underwood, Dougray Scott, Bruce Weitz, Betsy Brantley, Denise Crosby, and Kurtwood Smith. This was one of two similar summer 1998 releases — the other being Armageddon — but neither is very good. Bonus features include audio commentary, behind-thescenes featurettes, photo gallery, and more. Rated PG-13.

“GENNDY TARTAKOVSKY’S PRIMAL”: THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON (Cartoon Network Studios/ Warner Bros. Home Entertainment): The unlikely bond between a neanderthal man (voiced by Aaron LaPlante) and a female dinosaur forms the basis of this Emmy-winning animated, prehistoric fantasy series created by noted Russianborn animator and executive producer Genndy Tartakovsky and aired by Cartoon Network on its late-night Adult Swim programming. All 10 episodes of the 2022 season are available on DVD ($24.98 retail) and Blu-ray ($29.98 retail), each boasting a behind-the-scenes featurette.

BY MARK BURGER

DVD PICK OF THE WEEK: THE ASSASSINATION BUREAU

(Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment Group)

The veteran duo of producer/screenwriter Michael Relph and director Basil Dearden serve up a frothy blackcomedy confection with this 1969 adaptation of Jack London’s last, unfinished novel. But given the title, The Assassination Bureau struggled to find an audience in the United States, still reeling from the murders of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy the year before. Diana Rigg stars as Sonia Winter, a newspaper columnist and staunch su ragette who has uncovered irrefutable evidence of the titular organization, which has carried out countless acts of murder — ostensibly for the greater good, as opposed to profit. To destroy the orga-

nization from within, she hires the Assassination Bureau (Ltd.) to kill its chairman, Ivan Dragomilo (Oliver Reed). That Miss Winter’s publisher, Lord Bostwick (Telly Savalas), supports her endeavor is hardly a surprise: He’s Dragomilo ’s successor in the organization, and has nefarious plans of his own which could culminate in a world war.

The colorful period setting (1908) is liberally seasoned with a blithe “swinging ‘60s” sensibility, a touch of political satire, and plenty of whimsy — with ace cinematographer Geo rey Unsworth behind the camera and Ron Grainer providing a bouncy score. The much-missed Rigg deftly displays her comedy chops — and looks fabulous in a corset, the rakish Reed oozes star power, and Savalas (whose quasi-British accent is about as convincing as his mustache) plays the lethal Lord Bostwick with his inimitable relish, backed by such seasoned professionals as Curt Jurgens, Philippe Noiret, Warren Mitchell, Kenneth Gri th, Clive Revill, and Irene Handl in smaller roles.

The special-edition Blu-ray ($39.95 retail) includes audio commentary, original trailer, image gallery, collectible booklet, and the retrospective appreciation Right Film, Wrong Time. Rated PG.

KNOCKABOUT (Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment Group): A special-edition Blu-ray ($39.95 retail) of Sammo Hung’s 1979 feature directorial debut (originally titled Za jia xaio zi), starring Yuen Biao and Leung Kar-Yen) as brother hustlers whose antics leads them to study under martial-arts master Lau Kar-Wing, but when he turns on them they seek assistance from a bumbling beggar (Hung) who is an expert of “Garbage Kung Fu” (!). Bonus features include original Cantonese and Mandarin (with English subtitles) and English-dubbed audio options, audio commentaries, archival interviews, original theatrical trailer, and more.

LADY WHIRLWIND & HAPKIDO (Arrow Video/MVD Entertainment Group): A special-edition Blu-ray double feature ($39.95 retail) of a pair of martial-arts extravaganzas headlining high-kicking leading lady Angelo Mao, both directed by Feng Huang in 1972: The R-rated Lady Whirlwind (originally titled Tie zhang xuan feng tui and also released as Deep

Thrust), in which she seeks revenge for the death of her sister; and the R-rated Hapkido (originally titled Hi qi dao and also released as Lady Kung Fu), in which she, Sammo Hung, and Carter Wong play Chinese martial artists who encounter resistance — the violent kind, of course — when they attempt to open a school in Japanese-occupied Korea. Bonus features include original Mandarin (with English subtitles) and English-dubbed audio options, multiple audio commentaries, retrospective and vintage interviews, collectible booklet, trailers, and more.

MANDRAKE (Shudder/RLJE Films): Lynne Davison’s feature directorial debut stars Deirdre Mullins (in a solid turn) as a beleaguered parole o cer charged with monitoring the progress of a reclusive woman named “Bloody Mary” (Derbhle Crotty) after she is released from a 20year prison stint — only to discover that her moniker is well-earned and the legend surrounding her is not an urban legend. Executive producer Paul Kennedy plays

the local police constable (and Mullins’s ex-husband), and young Jude Hill — so good in his 2021 debut Belfast — plays their endangered son. Boosted by Andrew Simon McAllister’s spooky score and Conor Rotherham’s atmospheric cinematography, but this plays its hand too soon, and the ambiguous ending doesn’t satisfy. Still, worth a look for genre fans, available on DVD ($27.97 retail).

MOONLIGHTING WIVES & NAKED

FOG (Film Movement Classics): A pair of vintage ‘60s softcore “sexploitation” films written and directed by Joe Sarno (1921-2010), one of the genre’s leading filmmakers who later directed some well-received hardcore films of the ‘70s and ‘80s: Moonlighting Wives and Naked Fog were both released in 1966 and both star screen newcomer Tammy Latour (billed as Diane Vivienne” in Moonlighting Wives), available on DVD ($29.95 retail) and Blu-ray ($39.95 retail), each boasting bonus features including audio commentary with Tim Lucas and vintage interviews with Sarno and cinematographer Jerry Kalogeratos.

NEW GODS: YANG JIAN (GKIDS/ Shout! Factory): A DVD/Blu-ray combo ($26.98 retail) of director Ji Zhao’s award-winning anime follow-up (originally titled Xin shen bang: Yang Jian) to New Gods: Nezha Reborn, an adventure/ fantasy epic based on Chinese mythology, in which the titular hero — an impoverished bounty hunter — embarks on a quest to locate a powerful but dangerous artifact and must confront his past transgressions along the way. Bonus features include original Mandarin (with English subtitles) and English-dubbed audio options, cast and director interviews, art gallery, collectible poster, and more.

SOLO (Studio Mao/MVD Entertainment Group): Writer/director/first-time producer Ola Pankratova’s feature documentary celebrates the energy and sensuality of dance and movement as it follows six dancers in contemporary Russia as they perform various forms of dance — classical and modern, conventional and unconventional — with first-time cinematographer Roman Palchenkov’s cameras capturing every move (and mood) in high style. Well worth a look for dance devotees. In Russian with English subtitles, available on DVD ($19.95 retail). !

© 2023, Mark Burger.

BY THE EDITORS AT ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

CREME DE LA WEIRD

For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, a ritual event took place at the Sensoji Temple in Tokyo on April 22, The Guardian reported. The traditional “crying sumo” event features pairs of infants, held up by the parents facing each other, who are frightened into crying by sta wearing “oni” demon masks. The first baby to cry wins the match. “We can tell a baby’s health condition by listening to the way they cry,” said Hisae Watanabe, mother of an 8-month-old. “I want to hear her healthy crying.” Crying sumo events are held throughout the country. “In Japan, we believe babies who cry powerfully also grow up healthily,” explained Shigemi Fuji, chairman of the Asakusa Tourism Federation, which organized the event.

CLOTHING OPTIONAL

Police in Mesa, Arizona, responded to the One Life Church on April 16 after receiving a call about a naked man in the church’s baptismal fountain, AZCentral reported. O cers said Jeremiah Sykes,

20, was asked to leave repeatedly but wouldn’t comply; he then wrapped himself in a blanket and wandered about the property. Sykes told o cers he was baptizing himself. During his booking procedure, he punched two o cers, compounding his charges.

WRONG PLACE, WRONG TIME

Shivdayal Sharma, 82, died in a freak accident in the Alwar region of India on April 19, LBC reported. As Sharma urinated near a train track, a Vande Bharat express train struck a cow, launching it 100 feet into the air before it landed on him. Sharma was killed instantly, and another man narrowly escaped being hit also. Ironically, Sharma worked at Indian Railways before retiring 23 years ago. O cials are calling for metal fencing to keep cows away from the tracks, along with the removal of garbage and vegetation.

IT’S A DIRTY JOB

The Blackpool Zoo in England is hiring! Wanted: “A team of people to join our Visitor Services team as ‘Seagull Deterrents.’” You, too, can dress up in a large bird costume and scare away pesky

seagulls, which steal food from both visitors and animal enclosures. The Daily Mail reported that candidates must be “outgoing, as you need to be comfortable wearing a bird costume,” and hours will be variable.

THE PASSING PARADE

On April 19, Viktoria Nasyrova, 47, of Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced to 21 years in prison for a bizarre plot she cooked up against a lookalike friend from Ukraine, NBC News reported. Nasyrova wanted to avoid being sent back to Russia, where she faced charges in a 2014 murder, according to the Queens district attorney’s o ce. So in 2016, she laced a cheesecake with phenazepam, a powerful toxin found only in Russia, and fed it to her “friend.” The victim survived, but her Ukrainian passport and $4,000 in cash were stolen. Nasyrova’s attorney said that she will likely be deported after serving her sentence.

AWESOME!

— Seventh-grader Dillon Reeves of Warren, Michigan, is being hailed as a hero after he came to the rescue of a wayward school bus on April 26, ABC

News reported. Reeves noticed as he was riding the bus home from school that the driver was “in distress.” Superintendent Robert D. Livernois said the student “stepped to the front of the bus and helped bring it to a stop without incident. I could not be prouder of his efforts.” The bus driver had lost consciousness; emergency personnel tended to the driver, and students were delivered home on another bus.

— King Charles III’s coronation is only days away, and while the royal family will be shuttled to and fro in gold-clad carriages drawn by fine white horses, the average Londoner will be on foot. Or ... you can hire a horse-and-carriage Uber! Metro News reported on April 27 that the Coronation Carriage will operate May 3 through 5 in Dulwich Park in London; the fancy carriage is fashioned after the royal vehicle and features a plush interior with embroidered cushions and throws. Even more posh, Uber will donate money from the rides to Spana, a U.K. charity that supports the welfare of working animals.

©2023 Andrews McMeel Universal

3 Disparity in work pay

4 Children’s author Madeleine L’—

5 Abbr. for a handyperson

6 Refused the request

7 Blast from a lighthouse

8 Pet collar attachment

9 Homer Simpson cry

10 “Be right there” 11 Carpet style 12 Big icy chunk 13 GIs’ force

Coffee flavor

Curtain Call: Greensboro Symphony conductor gives farewell performance

“I can’t wait to make music with Bran,” said violinist and conductor Dmitry Sitkovetsky, whose May 11 performance with Branford Marsalis at the Tanger Center will mark his farewell as music director of the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra.

In a phone interview from London, Sitkovetsky said he’ll treasure his two decades with the Greensboro Symphony but called his retirement more sweet than bitter.

“It’s time. Few stay that long. I have mostly had a really wonderful time, and have built a great rapport with local and visiting musicians.”

But 2023 is very di erent from 2003, and Sitkovetsky and Greensboro have changed.

“The Tanger Center has been built, and now it’s a di erent era. It’s time for somebody completely di erent than me. They tell me they have these candidates that look very exciting and might be another Dmitry. I say, don’t look for another Dmitry, because you won’t find one. Look for somebody completely di erent, because you need to bring in a di erent kind of audience to fill this huge and incredibly modern space with popular concerts with names like Sting.”

He also believes the next music director should be someone who spends more time in the Triad.

“I’ve never lived in Greensboro for more than two months a year. I know the city very well from performing here for over 20 years, but it was never my home. That’s London, where my house and family are, and where, with God’s good grace, this summer I will become a grandfather.”

The maestro has been traveling most of his life.

“When I look at my passport as I cross various borders, I am aware I’m not getting any younger. Now, I’m still full of energy and ideas. I just finished a meeting about a major project I’ll be doing in

Berlin, and I’ll always work, just as I have ever since I won my first competition. But I think I’ve done pretty much everything that I can do in Greensboro. I’ve done so many interesting programs. It’s a lot of work. I’m very happy to be doing it, but maybe it needs to be paired with more time at home, more time with my family, hopefully with my grandson in the making, and to be defined not only by the work.”

Dmitry Yulianovich Sitkovetsky was born in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 1954. His mother Bella Davidovich was one of the Soviet Union’s preeminent classical musicians and one of the few women to be admitted to the inner circle of its cultural life. In 1949, she won the International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw. His father Julian won several international competitions and established himself as a celebrated violinist before his death at the age of 32 when Dmitry was three-years-old. After his father’s death, the family moved to Moscow, where Sitkovetsky entered the Moscow Conservatory.

Leaving Russia in 1977 wasn’t easy. “I was 22 and the draft age was up to 28. The state invested in my musical education and wanted a return on that investment. The only way to leave without being drafted into the army was to declare yourself unwell physically. I told them I had tendonitis and disappeared for over a year from the concert scene. I left by myself with a factory-made violin

with no bow, as I was not allowed to take any. I went with two suitcases in May 1977 to Vienna for eight days, and then I went to Rome to wait for three months before finally landing in New York as an émigré.”

He arrived just in time for the entrance exams at Julliard, which he passed with flying colors. Two years later, his mother immigrated as well. Her 1979 American debut at Carnegie Hall received a standing ovation. Now 94, she still lives in New York, where Sitkovetsky visited her recently.

She was already famous when she arrived here. Her son soon was. While he has played the violin and conducted orchestras at distinguished venues across the globe, his greatest claim to posterity may be his transcription of The Goldberg Variations, a complex and extremely di cult 1741 composition for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. It’s named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may also have been its first performer.

It was classical pianist Glenn Gould, the most famous 20th-century interpreter of the work, who inspired Sitkovetsky to create the transcription that may outlive him. YES! Weekly asked Sitkovetsky to explain just what a musical transcription is.

“In this sense, it is a reinvention of a piece of music. Originally, the Goldberg Variations was written for a two-manual harpsichord. When it’s played on the piano, that’s not the instrument it was

written for, because a piano is one keyboard, whereas a two-manual harpsichord has two.”

But Gould’s playing it on the piano inspired Sitkovetsky to “reinvent” it for instruments more di erent from a piano than a piano is from a harpsichord.

“I spent a lot of time with Glenn Gould, not physically, but mentally. What I did was something nobody had ever thought of. I totally changed the keyboard piece. Now, harpsichord and piano are keyboard instruments, but I thought it would work really well on string trio, which is violin, viola, and cello, and totally changes the whole sound, articulation, and everything. And after I did that, thousands, an army of string players all over the world, started playing my arrangement.”

After Sitkovetsky’s transcription was published, he recorded it with cellist Misha Maisky and violist Gerard Causse on a 1987 LP on the Hyperion label, with the performance credited to the Leopold String Trio. BBC Music Magazine wrote, “This arrangement has been recorded several times … but Leopold’s belated entry into the field eclipses all others.” He then did an orchestral version that he has performed all over the world.

“Now many other people do it, and this transcription is more often played without me than with me, but I’ve become sort of a cult figure among musicians who don’t know anything else about me. They probably think I’m about the same age as Bach.”

Not all transcriptions are so dramatically di erent from the original arrangement.

“But in the case of Goldberg, it was so incredibly di cult for one person to play on piano or harpsichord. Now there are more string musicians playing that piece today than there are pianists or harpsichordists. I did it because I loved the piece and was completely obsessed with Glenn Gould’s recording and Bach is my favorite composer, so I spent two months in the company of Bach and Glenn Gould. That was the best time I’ve ever spent with anyone.”

Seventeen years after his now-classic transcription was published, he became music director of the Greensboro Symphony.

“I came in 2002 when Stuart Malina was music director and he invited me

Ian McDowell Contributor

Dimitry Sitkovetsky conducting

to play Beethoven concerto. And I came in and noticed there was the O. Henry Hotel. Now, O. Henry was known to every Russian. When I went to O. Henry Museum in 1962, the only stamp commemorating his 100th birthday was from Soviet Union. So, I was predisposed.”

And he found he liked the city where William Sidney Porter, who wrote under the pen name O. Henry, was born.

“The orchestra was very good and the people were very nice and, as it turned out, were in the process of choosing someone to succeed Stuart. The following year, they asked me. I said, if you want me to do exactly the same as what’s always worked for you, I’m the wrong person because I will change things. I will bring in the soloists I think outstanding and certain programs you’ve never heard before, and I will shake things up because that’s my nature and I cannot do otherwise. They agreed. I got to know the LeBauer family and the Cones and Kathy Manning became very involved early on, and her husband Randall Kaplan was later so instrumental in building Tanger. So, I realized this was a very interesting town full of interesting people.”

Sitkovetsky is very proud, not only of his work as a conductor and music director here but of the other musicians he’s invited to perform solos.

“And of having brought chamber music here. Before that, there was no chamber music at all connected with the symphony. There was a bit at UNCG, but then we developed this chamber music series that is really dear to my heart, and has been part of the Greensboro Symphony almost as long as I have.”

He has some concerns about what will happen with classical music in Greensboro but made it clear they are not based

on anything he could change if he did not retire.

“The audience for classical music has not come back after the pandemic, and not just here. I mean, some have, but most stay home. They’re older and more scared to be in a crowd of people. It’s going to be a long and di cult process. I feel that this a perfect time to have a fresh approach to the programming and the choice of guest artists, but they have a lot of work to do.”

He’s looking forward to May 11, when he will be performing with the celebrated saxophonist, composer, and band leader Branford Marsalis at the Tanger Center. While primarily known for his work in jazz as the leader of the Branford Marsalis Quartet, Marsalis also performs frequently as a soloist with classical ensembles.

“Anything I proposed, he jumped at. I asked if it would be too crazy to do Bach double, me on violin and him on saxophone? He said, why not? I love people like that. When I asked what he would like to do for chamber music, he named two major ensembles written for saxophone and string quartet, one by Adolf Busch and one by the wonderful contemporary composer Ellen Zwilich. I said, how about playing a couple of encores after that, just you and me and piano, as maybe Stravinsky clarinet could work on the sax. He said absolutely! If only everybody was as easy to work with as Bran. But you know, at the very top, people are often that way. It’s the ones who think they’re the top, but who aren’t really, that are di cult.” ! IAN MCDOWELL is

author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s

Video of GPD o cer shooting teen depicts actions Justice Department warns against

Video released by the Greensboro Police depicts Corporal Mathew Sletten fatally firing at the vehicle driven by 17-year Nasanto Crenshaw rather than taking evasive action. That is not what the U.S. Department of Justice recommends an o cer do.

Shooting at the vehicle rather than avoiding its path also violates directives of several major metropolitan police departments. Whether it does Greensboro’s will be determined by an internal investigation. On March 30, Guilford County District Attorney Avery Crump declined to indict Sletten on criminal charges, but the GPD investigation will determine if he contravened policy.

In the most recent Critical Incident Community Briefing, a 16-minute compilation video on the City of Greensboro YouTube channel, GPD public information o cer Josie Cambareri states:

“In the coming months, the professional standards division of the Greensboro police department will complete an internal administrative investigation and will review all relevant from this case in order to make a determination as to whether the o cer’s actions and use of force were within policy and standardized procedures of the Greensboro police department.”

Until then, Sletten remains on adminis-

incident on the CityofGreensboroNC channel. Video 1 is from Sletten’s bodycam and Video 2 is from his dashcam.

The “Critical Incident” compilation, stated Cambareri, is to “provide factual context for the significant video footage.” But that “factual context” contains one error.

Some reports have stated the shooting occurred in the parking lot of Dollar General at 4903 West Market, a claim repeated in the “Critical Incident” video.

In reality, the shooting was at FantaCity International Shopping Center at 4925 West Market, where Sletten fired the fatal shots in the cul-de-sac lined by a karaoke bar on one side and Market Street on the other. Here is what can be seen in Sletten’s unedited video.

At around 9:10 p.m. on Sunday, August 22, 2022, Sletten drives west on Market when he notes the white Nissan behind him has its high beams on. Sletten slows down to induce the car to pass, then follows.

The Nissan turns into FantaCity near Lucha Libre Ice Cream, incorrectly stating on his radio that he is turning into the Dollar General lot.

Near Danji Korean Restaurant, Sletten flashes blue lights and parks behind the Nissan, which has stopped, but accelerates away when Sletten gets out.

When Sletten re-enters his patrol car, dispatch informs him that the Nissan is stolen. Seven months after the shooting, details of how and where it was stolen, and by and from whom, remain unclear.

Last September, Crenshaw’s sister stated that several juveniles pulled up to her mother’s house in the Fayetteville area in the Nissan and he rode away with them.

Sletten follows the Nissan, which turns left into the cul-de-sac around the corner from the closed Babylon Restaurant. Sletten pulls into that dead-end to block the Nissan’s exit. The Nissan has turned sideways, its right rear passenger door open. GPD later reported that three

COME SEE WHY EVERYONE LOVES

juveniles exited the rear seat of the Nissan and fled on foot. GPD and attorneys for Crenshaw’s family agree that Crenshaw was driving and that a younger teen remained in the seat beside him. The Crenshaw attorneys say the passenger was 14.

Crenshaw attempts a three-point turn, scraping the front of the patrol car, then backing away from it down the dead-end. Sletten exits his patrol car and, standing to the rear of it, yells “Get on the ground, do it now!”

Crenshaw accelerates. Whether he is driving at Sletten or attempting to drive past on his right is a matter of contention, but it’s unclear how Crenshaw could have struck him without hitting his patrol car first. Neither he nor his car are struck as he fires three shots.

The first is as Crenshaw swerves away from him. The second, as the Nissan passes. He turns and fires the third shot after it. The car swerves, hops the curb, and stops on the grassy berm beside Market Street, the right rear passenger door still open.

When Sletten fired at the passing Nisan, it was also in the direction of Market Street tra c. The medical examiner’s report, which has been obtained by YES! Weekly, does not give the sequence of shots, but describes the trajectories.

One bullet struck Crenshaw on the right side of his neck just above the right shoulder, penetrating the right side of the 3rd cervical vertebra and severing the spinal cord before coming to rest in the left side of the 3rd cervical vertebra.

One bullet entered the right side of Crenshaw’s chest between nipple and

Ian McDowell

Contributor

Nasanto Crenshaw

First Shot Recorded

armpit, penetrating the right lung, right pericardium, right atrium and across to the left atrium, left ventricle, left pericardium and lower lobe of the left lung, before lodging in the left seventh rib.

One bullet lodged in the fleshy part of his right forearm. The autopsy report does not indicate the trajectory of the arm wound, but describes the throat and chest wounds as “from right to left.” When Crenshaw drove past Sletten, the teen and the o cer would have been at each other’s right.

The wounds may lend support to claims by attorneys for Crenshaw’s mother Wakita Doriety, who is suing Sletten and the City of Greensboro, that the slain Black teen was not directing the vehicle at the white o cer, but attempting to drive around him.

“The wheels of the car were clearly turned away from Sletten and he simply wasn’t in the car’s path when he fired the first shot,” alleged attorneys Harry M. Daniels and Chimeaka White in an April 25 statement. “The front of the car had passed when he fired his second and the car had passed entirely when he fired the third shot, killing Nasanto and barely missing a 14-year-old sitting in the passenger seat.”

After the Nissan stops, the minor in the front seat beside Crenshaw tumbles out. “Get on the ground!” yells Sletten, pointing his gun. The passenger’s face is obscured and his audio redacted, but Sletten’s responses indicate the teen is expressing terror.

“I’m not going to hurt you!” says Sletten before the sound is muted. When it resumes, Sletten yells “I need to get him treated.” The passenger’s reply is muted, but Sletten yells “he ran at me with the car!” Then, more calmly, “I’m not going to hurt you, but you need to listen to me!”

Sletten calls for EMS and backup. When he sees an approaching patrol car, he radios for it to come help rather than pursue the teens fleeing on foot, then handcu s the one on the ground. Both of

the car’s passenger-side doors are open. Sletten walks around to the driver’s side, where both doors are locked. He attempts to break the window with his baton but does not succeed. When two other o cers arrive, he tells them to reach through the open passenger door and unlock the car.

They pull Crenshaw’s body out. His face and wounds are digitally obscured. Sletten begins chest compressions. Then the three newly arrived o cers take over CPR e orts until EMS arrives.

The time between Sletten firing his third shot and beginning CPR is approximately four minutes and five seconds. According to the GPD, Crenshaw was declared deceased by on-scene EMS.

According to GPD Departmental Directives, o cers should only shoot at a moving vehicle when:

• An occupant of the vehicle is using or threatening to use lethal force by means other than the vehicle.

• The vehicle is being operated in a manner deliberately intended to strike a person.

• All other reasonable means of defense or escape (including taking cover or moving out of the path of the vehicle or other evasive action) have been exhausted, are not practical, or are not present.

• Use of deadly force must cease after the vehicle no longer presents an immediate threat.

Shooting at vehicles has been an issue for decades,” wrote Geo rey Alpert, a Criminology professor at the University of South Carolina who is an expert on police use of force, in a Saturday email. “It’s prohibited in many agencies, with a minor loophole that if the o cer is trapped or unable to get out of the way of a vehicle coming at them — in a narrow alley with no escape, or if they fell down and the car is backing up towards them. Otherwise, as this video shows, it is likely that the fleeing suspect is trying to get away and not attempting to run over the o cer.”

The May 2021 Atlantic article “Why Do Police Keep Shooting into Moving Cars?”

describes the risk of doing so rather than getting out of its way. This risk was also addressed by the New York Times in the 2021 article “How Police Justify Killings at Tra c Stops,” which reported that the “U.S. Justice Department has warned against the practice for decades, pressuring police departments to forbid it.”

Reporters Kim Barker, Steve Eder, David D. Kirkpatrick, and Arya Sundaram quoted former Seattle police chief Carmen Best as agreeing. “If you think the vehicle is coming toward you, get yourself out of the way.” They also reported that footage from 400 incidents indicated “local police o cers, state troopers and sheri ’s deputies put themselves at risk by jumping in front of moving cars, then aiming their guns at the drivers as if in a Hollywood movie.”

“The US Department of Justice has in recent years consistently advised or instructed departments to ban shooting at moving vehicles,” reported The Guardian in the 2015 study “US police acted against federal guidelines with shootings into moving cars,” which cited the DOJ’s

Community Oriented Policing Services (Cops) o ce as introducing a policy that “the imminent threat must be by means other than the vehicle itself.”

“A reasonable o cer doesn’t want to shoot at a vehicle,” said Alpert in a Sunday phone conversation after he viewed the video. “If you’re successful and actually hit the driver, now you’ve got an unguided missile, and who knows where it’s going to go. If that was in an empty parking lot, it’s one thing, but if there are people around, it’s something else.”

When told the video of Crenshaw’s death also depicts patrons walking towards the Karaoke bar near where he was shot,” Alpert said he didn’t want to comment directly on the video without further study. “But a reasonable person can draw conclusions.”” !

IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of.

Second Shot Third Shot

Aerosmith Announce

Farewell Tour: With Raleigh & Charlotte “Peace Out” Stops

Today, four-time GRAMMY® awardwinning and diamond-certified rock legends Aerosmith have announced their final outing — PEACE OUT™ — with special guest The Black Crowes. Fans will see one of the most significant American rock bands in history one last time during this not-to-be-missed final tour. Every night will celebrate the five decades of Aerosmith’s groundbreaking hits as they celebrate 50 years as America’s greatest rock band. In addition, THX will bring their Certified Live! high-fidelity experience on the road, calibrating each arena with leading-edge audio technology so fans don’t miss a beat of Aerosmith’s classic rock tunes in quality audio.

In a joint statement, Aerosmith shared, “It’s not goodbye it’s PEACE OUT! Get ready and walk this way, you’re going to get the best show of our lives.”

Produced by Live Nation, the monumental 40-date North American tour kicks o in Philadelphia, PA, on September 2, and includes two NC stops: PNC Arena in Raleigh, Sept. 24 and Spectrum Center in Charlotte, Oct. 17. A highlight of the tour will be a stop in Boston for a special hometown show on New Year’s Eve 2023.

Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, May 5 at 10 a.m. local time at Ticketmaster.com.

The tour will also o er a variety of different VIP packages and experiences for fans to take their concert experience to the next level. Packages vary but include

a premium reserved ticket, a personal photo opportunity with band members, limited edition merchandise and more. For more information, visit Aerosmith. com/vip

The band also shared news of Joey Kramer’s absence from this touring run. ‘“While Joey Kramer remains a beloved founding member of Aerosmith, he has regrettably made the decision to sit out the currently scheduled touring dates to focus his full attention on his family and health. Joey’s unmistakable and legendary presence behind the drum kit will be sorely missed.”

Most recently, Aerosmith wrapped their critically acclaimed Las Vegas residency, AEROSMITH: DEUCES ARE WILD, at Dolby Live at Park MGM. The electrifying 90-minute live performance took fans deep diving into Aerosmith’s groundbreaking career with exclusive, unreleased audio and never-beforeseen visuals from the band’s archives produced by Oscar and Emmy-winning global visual e ects studio Pixomondo.

Ahead of the residency, Aerosmith returned to their hometown in Boston to perform a record-breaking one-o show at Fenway Park as part of the legendary band’s 50th anniversary celebrations. With over 38,700 people in attendance, it was the most tickets sold to date for a show at the iconic venue.

For a complete list of tour dates and more information, visit Aerosmith.com. !

ARCHDALE

FIREHOUSE TAPROOM

10146 N Main St | 336.804.9441 www.facebook.com/firehousetaproom/

ASHEBORO

FOUR SAInTS BREwIng

218 South Fayetteville St. | 336.610.3722 www.foursaintsbrewing.com

Thursdays: Taproom Trivia

Fridays: Music Bingo

May 6: Jamie Trout

May 27: william nesmith

CARBORRO

CAT ’S CRAdlE

300 E Main St | 919.967.9053

www.catscradle.com

May 3: Yaeji

May 4: Erie Choir, lud

May 5: niiTO

May 5: Puma Blue

May 6: destroyer

May 6: Mdou Moctar

May 9: Hoodoo gurus

May 10: Feist

May 10: shame

May 10: Transviolet

May 11: dopapod

May 12: Vienna Teng

May 13: Odie leigh

May 16: Annie diRuddo

May 19: Sueco

May 19: Slow Teeth

May 20: Tim Barry

May 21: The new Pornographers

May 22: Matthew logan Vasquez

May 22: OFF!

May 27: Backseat lovers

May 27: Thrice

May 27: westerman

May 28: K. Flay

May 28: Panchiko

May 28: THe Crystal Casino Band

May 30-31: Indigo de Souza

May 31: la luz

CHARLOttE BOJAnglES COlISEUM

2700 E Independence Blvd | 704.372.3600 www.boplex.com

May 3: It’s Time Ft: naomi, Tasha, natalie and Taya

May 4: Seal

May 7: Blessd: Blessd Corner

May 12: Ceelo green, Plies, Juvenile, Trick daddy, goodie Mob, lil webbie

THE FIllMORE

1000 NC Music Factory Blvd | 704.916.8970

www.livenation.com

May 3: goth Babe

May 4: Sun Room

May 5: Alestorm

May 5: VV/ neon noir Tour 2023

May 7: Joey Valence & Brae

May 8: The Flaming lips

May 9: Alter Bridge

May 10: Bury Tomorrow

May 10: City Morgue

May 12: Saosin

May 13: natalia Jimenez

May 13: Haken

May 14: Voivod

May 15: Set it Off

May 16: The gaslight Anthem

May 16: Homixide gang

May 17: Jazz is dead

May 18: Sepultura And Kreator

May 18: The warning

May 19: Plini

May 19: Bullet for My Valentine

May 20: KEnIA OS

May 21: dark Funeral

May 22: Band-Maid

May 25: Bryson TIller

May 25: Badflower

May 26: greg Puciato

May 26: The Backseat lovers

May 27: grandson & K.Flay

May 28: leon larregui

May 31: Eladio Carrion

PnC MUSIC PAVIlIOn

707 Pavilion Blvd | 704.549.1292

www.livenation.com

May 12: Janet Jackson & ludacris

May 21: godsmack & I Prevail

May 30: dead & Compamy

SKYlA CREdIT UnIOn

AMPHITHEATRE

former Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre

820 Hamilton St | 704.549.5555

www.livenation.com

May 11-12: Cody Jinks

May 14: Quinn XCII

May 15: Robert Plant & Alison Krauss

May 30: Ryan Adams & The Cardinals

SPECTRUM CEnTER

333 E Trade St | 704.688.9000

www.spectrumcentercharlotte.com

May 6: Tomorrow X Together

May 23: Paramore

CLEmmOnS

VIllAgE SQUARE

TAP HOUSE

6000 Meadowbrook Mall Ct | 336.448.5330

www.facebook.com/vstaphouse

May 5: whiskey Mic

May 6: Matt dylan & The Honky Tonk Outlaws

May 11: James Vincent Carroll

May 12: Motorvader

May 13: billy Creason Band

DuRHAm

CAROlInA THEATRE

309 W Morgan St | 919.560.3030

www.carolinatheatre.org

May 8: Morgan wade

May 9: Keb’ Mo’

May 12: leonid & Friends: A Tribute to the Music of Chicago

May 13: Slippery Hill Bluegrass

May 16: Josh Ritter and The Royal City Band

May 17: Crowded House

TACOS

Grilled Chicken + Sriracha Lime Aioli $2.50

Beef + Sriracha Lime Aioli $2.50

Bean + Sriracha Lime Aioli $2.50 Beer Battered Shrip + Sriracha Lime Aioli $3.50 Crispy Chicken + House-Made Ranch $3.50

NACHOS

(Add blackened chicken or ground beef + $3.50)

BEER

Modelo Draft & Bottle $5 Modelo Pitcher $10 Modelo or Corona Bucket $10

May 21: Spyro gyra

dPAC

123 Vivian St | 919.680.2787

www.dpacnc.com

May 2-14: Moulin Rouge! The Musical

May 18: Triangle Rising Stars

May 19: get the led Out

May 20: John Mellencamp

May 23: The Beach Boys

May 30-Jun 4: 1776

ELKIn

REEVES THEATER

129 W Main St | 336.258.8240

www.reevestheater.com

wednesdays: Reeves Open Mic

Fourth Thursdays: Old-Time Jam

May 13: The Foreign landers

May 19: The Classic drifters

May 20: The Reeves House Band -

90’s Show

May 27: darin & Brooke Aldridge

SPIRITS

House Margarita $4 (add flavor + $1) Coronita $8 Mango Tango $8

greensboro

Barn DinnEr ThEaTrE

120 Stage Coach Tr. | 336.292.2211

www.barndinner.com

apr 22- May 27: The Sweet Delilah Swim Club

Carolina ThEaTrE

310 S. Greene Street | 336.333.2605

www.carolinatheatre.com

May 7: BaZooKa! w/ Diana Tuffin

CoMEDY ZonE

1126 S Holden Rd | 336.333.1034 www.thecomedyzone.com

May 5-6: Jamees Davis

May 12-13: leah rudick

May 19-20: Darren Fleet

May 26-28: Tommy Davidson

CoMMon GrounDS

602 S Elm Ave | 336.698.388

www.facebook.com/CommonGroundsGreensboro

ConE DEniM

117 S Elm St | 336.378.9646

www.cdecgreensboro.com

May 18: Jackyl

GaraGE TavErn

5211 A West Market St | 336.763.2020

www.facebook.com/GarageTavernGreensboro

GranDovEr rESorT

2275 Vanstory Street Suite 200 | 336.294.1800

www.grandover.com

Wednesdays: live Jazz w/ Steve haines Trio

GrEEnSBoro ColiSEuM

1921 W Gate City Blvd | 336.373.7400

www.greensborocoliseum.com

May 6: Mana

May 12: Straight Jokes! no Chaser

May 17: Kevin hart

hanGar 1819

1819 Spring Garden St | 336.579.6480

www.hangar1819.com

May 4: Smash to Pieces, Citizen Soldier

May 6: holy rollers, Sleepless Denver

May 8: Conjurer w/ False Prophet, End of Your rope, and i Become Death

May 9: The Callous Daoboys, hazing over, Dull Mourning, This is Your God, rotting in Dirt

May 16: Kevin nichols

May 17: against The Current, Trophy Eyes & Yours Truly

May 19: nekrogoblikon

May 20: Bloodywood, vended, Wargasm uK

May 21: Converge, Brutus & Frailbody

May 23: Born of osiris

May 27: Gary Maverick Band

May 28: attack attack, Belmont, Traitors, Savage hands

liTTlE BroThEr

BrEWinG

348 South Elm St | 336.510.9678

www.facebook.com/littlebrotherbrew

Wednesdays: Trivia

Fridays & Saturdays: Free live Music

PiEDMonT hall

2411 W Gate City Blvd | 336.373.7400

www.greensborocoliseum.com

May 6: alter Bridge: The Pawns & Kings Tour

May 11: Grace Potter

STEvEn TanGEr CEnTEr

300 N Elm Street | 336.333.6500

www.tangercenter.com

May 5: Jill Scott

May 7: Zach Williams

May 11: Branford Marsalis

ThE iDioT Box

CoMEDY CluB

503 N. Greene St | 336.274.2699

www.idiotboxers.com

Thursdays: open Mic

May 9: Maria Bamford

May 12: Carter Deems

WinESTYlES

3326 W Friendly Ave Suite 141 |

336.299.4505

www.facebook.com/winestylesgreensboro277

high point

1614 DMB

1614 N Main St | 336.883.4113

https://www.1614drinksmusicbilliards.com/

hiGh PoinT ThEaTrE

220 E Commerce Ave | 336.883.3401

www.highpointtheatre.com

May 5-7: hPu Theatre: Matilda

PlanK STrEET TavErn 138 Church Ave | 336.991.5016

www.facebook.com/plankstreettavern

SWEET olD Bill’S

1232 N Main St | 336.807.1476

www.sweetoldbills.com

upcoming EvEnts

May 3: Tecoby Hines

May 4: Step Friends w/ Gentle Junior

May 5: Cinco De Mayo w/ Royal Jelly + The Mobb

May 6: Eric Travers Band

May 7: Dan Davis Trio (Free)

May 9: Ping Pong Tourney w/ prizes

May 10: Unheard Project

May 11: Jonathan Scales Fourchestra w/ Elora Dash

May 12: Drew Foust’s

HOURS: Tues-Fri: 3pm-unTil

saT & sun 12pm-unTil

221 Summit Ave | 336.501.3967

www.flatirongso.com

JAMESTOWN

THE DECK

118 E Main St | 336.207.1999

www.thedeckatrivertwist.com

May 5: Brother Pearl

May 6: Stone Parker Band

May 11: Bradley Steele

May 12: Roads Band

May 13: Toyz

May 18: Dan Miller

May 20: Retro Vinyl

May 25: The Aquarius

May 26: Huckleberry Shine

KERNERSVILLE

BREATHE

COCKTAIL LOUNGE

221 N Main St. | 336.497.4822

www.facebook.com/BreatheCocktailLounge

Wednesdays: Karaoke

May 13: Burlesk Flower Power

May 26: SMASHAT

KERNERSVILLE

BREWING COMPANY

221 N Main St. | 336.816.7283

www.facebook.com/kernersvillebrewing

Thursdays: Trivia

LIBERTY

THE LIBERTY

SHOWCASE THEATER

101 S. Fayetteville St | 336.622.3844

www.TheLibertyShowcase.com

May 13: Bryan White

May 20: Rhonda Vincent & The Rage

OAK RIDGE

BISTRO 150

2205 Oak Ridge Rd | 336.643.6359

www.bistro150.com

RALEIGH

CCU MUSIC PARK

AT WALNUT CREEK

3801 Rock Quarry Rd | 919.821.4111

www.livenation.com

LINCOLN THEATRE

126 E. Cabarrus St | 919.831.6400

www.lincolntheatre.com

May 4: Grateful Dub- Reggae Infused

Tribute to the Grateful Dead w/ Wood Belly

May 5: Pert Near Sandstone & The Way Down Wanderers

May 6: SUSTO w/ Harvey Street Co.

May 7: Ana Popovic

May 13: Railroad Earth

May 19: Mostley Crue w/ Flying High

Again/ Voodoo

May 20: Start Making Sense ( The Talking Heads Tribute)

May 26: BigbabyGucci

May 28: K. Flay

REd HAT AMpHiTHEATER

500 S McDowell St | 919.996.8800

www.redhatamphitheater.com

May 28: Ryan Adams & the Cardinals

pNC ARENA

1400 Edwards Mill Rd | 919.861.2300

www.thepncarena.com

May 10: Lizzo

May 12: Stevie Nicks

Randleman

KAMiKAzE’S TAVERN

5701 Randleman Rd | 336.908.6144

www.facebook.com/kamikazestavern

Karaoke Every Tuesday & Thursday

winston-salem

EARL’S

121 West 9th Street | 336.448.0018

www.earlsws.com

Mondays: Open Mic

Thursdays: Will Jones

May 5: Carolina Clay

May 6: Fox N’Vead

May 7: Billy Creason and dustin York

May 12-13: zack Brock and the Good intentions

May 14: Lando and the Mando duo

May 19: Travis Grubb and the Stoned Rangers

May 20: Billy Creason Band

May 21: Will Jones

May 26: The Mighty Fairlanes

May 27: Mike Cosner and the Fugatives

May 28: Gypsy 3

FiddLiN’ FiSH

BREWiNG COMpANY

772 Trade St | 336.999.8945

www.fiddlinfish.com

Tuesdays: Trivia

May 5: Fruit Smoothie Trio

May 6: Jessie dunks

May 12: Red Umber

May 19: None of the Above Bluegrass

FOOTHiLLS BREWiNG

638 W 4th St | 336.777.3348

www.foothillsbrewing.com

Sundays: Sunday Jazz

Thursdays: Trivia

May 3: The Robertson Boys

May 5: david Childers

May 6: The Chad Huskey Band

May 7: iNCogNiTo

May 10: Terra-String

May 12: James Vincent Carroll

May 13: Lisa Saint & Sam Robinson

May 14: Taylor Mason

May 17: Colin Cutler

May 19: Camel City Blues

May 20: Ben dehan

May 21: Evan Blackerby

MidWAY MUSiC HALL

11141 Old US Hwy 52, Suite 10 | 336.793.4218

www.facebook.com/midwaymusichallandeventcenter

Mondays: Line dancing

May 6: Oldskool Band

May 13: Crimson Rose Band

May 20: The Classics

MUddY CREEK CAFE & MUSiC HALL

137 West St | 336.201.5182

www.facebook.com/MuddyCreekCafe

THE RAMKAT

170 W 9th St | 336.754.9714

www.theramkat.com

May 3: Wood Belly, into The Fog

May 4: dirty Logic ( A Steely dan Tribute)

May 5: pylon Reenactment Society, Secret Monkey Weekend, it’s Snakes

May 6: Snail Mail, Water From Your Eyes, dazy

May 7: Riki Rachtman

May 9: Citizen Cope

May 10: A Night for Alex: A Benefit for Alex McKinney

May 12: Jd Simo

May 13: Tyler Booth, Brooke Lee

May 15: The Bronzed Chorus, Life in Vacuum

May 18: Nikki Morgan, Laura Jane Vincent

May 19: Tristan Tritt, Seven Year Witch

May 20: Spyro Gyra, Travis Williams Group

May 24: The Barrett davis Trio, Momma Molasses

ROAR

633 North Liberty Street | 336-917-3008

www.roarws.com | www.roarbrandstheater. com

May 3: Woody Belly, into The Fog

May 4: dirty Logic ( A Steely dan Tribute)

May 5: pylon Reenactment Society, Secret Monkey Weekend, it’s Snakes

May 6: Snail Mail, Water From Your Eyes, dazy

May 7: Riki Rachtman

May 9: Citizen Cope

May 10: A Night for Alex: A Benefit for Alex McKinney

May 12: Silent disco with dJs SK, Enapop & Vonfunkhauser

May 12: Jd Simo

May 13: Tyler Booth, Brooke Lee

May 15: The Bronzed Chorus, Life in Vacuum

May 18: Nikki Morgan, Laura Jane Vincent

May 19: Tristan Tritt

May 20: Spyro Gyra

May 24: The Barrett davis Trio, Momma Molasses

May 25: Withdrew, The Gone Ghosts

WiSE MAN BREWiNG

826 Angelo Bros Ave | 336.725.0008 www.wisemanbrewing.com

Thursdays: Music Bingo

May 29: Basses Covered Brass

May 12: Gipsy danger

Barnhardt Food Truck Festival

4.30.23 | Greensboro | Katei Cranford

Greensboro Food Truck Festival

QL Richardson

last call

by Fifi Rodriguez

[1. GEOGRAPHY: How many U.S. states border Canada?

[2. THEATER: The musical “My Fair Lady” is based on which play?

[3. SCIENCE: Who was the first person to win Nobel prizes in two di erent sciences?

[4. MOVIES: Which 1997 movie featured a character named Jack Dawson?

[5. TELEVISION: What is the name of Ross’s pet monkey in “Friends”?

[6. LANGUAGE: How many languages exist worldwide?

[7. FOOD & DRINK: Which country produces Manchego cheese?

[8. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE: How many track and field events are in a decathlon?

[9. U.S. PRESIDENTS: Which president had the most children?

[10. MUSIC: What is the title of Britney Spears’ first album?

answer

10. “... Baby One More Time.”

9. John Tyler, who fathered 15 children.

7. Spain. 8. 10.

6. More than 7,000.

5. Marcel.

4. “Titanic.”

3. Marie Curie, physics and chemistry.

2. “Pygmalion,” by George Bernard Shaw.

1. 13.

[ARIES (March 21 to April 19) That sometimes contrarian Arian streak emerges and could a ect an important decision. Try to keep your mind open to the possibilities, even if they currently seem remote.

[TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) It could be a long wait before you get an answer to a question involving financial matters. Meanwhile, check on other interesting possibilities.

[GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) A misunderstanding shouldn’t keep you from continuing to work. Pursue a reconciliation with someone who really cares. Talk it out before you consider walking out.

[CANCER (June 21 to July 22) Exercise some discipline -- don’t keep changing your mind. An upcoming decision requires that you stay focused on the direction you need to follow.

both obligations wisely.

[VIRGO (August 23 to September 22) Your on-the-job problems appear close to being resolved. Now, make time to repair those personal relationships that you might have ignored for too long.

[LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) Someone might suddenly balk at fulfilling an important agreement. There could be a hidden reason that you’ll need to uncover before you take this to arbitration.

[SCORPIO (October 23 to November 21) A friend seeks to confide a secret, knowing it will be safe with you. But, given your friend’s history, you might not want to know what you’ll be told.

© 2023 by King Features Syndicate, Inc.

[LEO (July 23 to August 22) Although family matters take up much of your time these days, you still need to deal with important workplace issues. Try to balance

[SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) Your new “self-improvement” course will continue to hit bumps in the road until you start shedding those unnecessary loads you’ve toted for too long.

[CAPRICORN (December 22 to

The Sportscenter Athletic Club is a private membership club dedicated to providing the ultimate athletic and recreational facilities for our members of all ages. Conveniently located in High Point, we provide a wide variety of activities for our members. We’re designed to incorporate the total fitness concept for maximum benefits and total enjoyment. We cordially invite all of you to be a part of our athletic facility, while enjoying the membership savings we offer our established corporate accounts.

January 19) A decision to move to a new home needs to be delayed until you have accurate reports about its condition. Rely on facts, not assurances.

[AQuArIus (January 20 to February 18) Congratulations! Your good work is beginning to pay off. Reward yourself. Take some much-needed rest and recreation time with loved ones.

[PIsces (February 19 to March 20) Fishing for compliments isn’t always wise. Build your self-esteem on your own worthy achievements, and don’t rely on others to tell you how good you are.

[BorN THIs week: People who meet you want to get to know you better, but you tend to be difficult to please when it comes to forming friendships.

© 2023 by King Features Syndicate