Results tagged “arts”

These week we venture up to Mount Airy to Allens Lane, which is part of the Fairmount Park system. Allens Lane has some sentimental value to me, as I've worked on some shows at the theater there. "What? There's a theater in the park?" you ask. Yes, there is, which is one thing I love about writing this column and exploring the parks in this city: I never knew Allens Lane "counted" as a park until I started poking around. Also, I love the fact that our parks are multi-faceted, not just places for running around outdoors and picnicking, but also for getting a nice dose of arts and culture.

Nichole Canuso Dance Company's Wandering Alice was, far and away, one of the best pieces of the 2008 Philadelphia Live Arts Festival. And when we see performances we like, we want to support the organizations that produce them—so take this post as Phillyist's official endorsement of NCDC, which will be having what sounds like a pretty kick-ass fundraiser.

I don't think that I'll ever get tired of BalletX. They are probably the most consistent performing arts group in Philadelphia, and even their older pieces, the ones that I've seen two or three times, deliver.

Neal Dandade is one of my heroes. Luckily for me, unlike most people's heroes, I know mine. Quite well, actually: Neal and I go back ten years and two thousand miles to Coronado High School in El Paso, Texas. We acted together then, and now I'm lucky to get onstage once a year, but Neal is doing it professionally, performing with a number of improvisational and sketch comedy groups in the Chicago area—including the career-launching Second City. As you'll see from his interview below, improv is a natural fit for Neal, who sometimes thinks so fast it's hard to keep up. ("He was always so bright," as Mamaist put it.) You may actually have seen some of his work: know those Boost Mobile commercials with the rapping George Washington? Neal actually originated the jingle (but hasn't, as of yet, been given any credit for his work).

Drama Queen alerts us that Mayor Michael Nutter announced the opening of the Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, a "Frankenversion of the old Office of Arts and Culture (OAC)."

The perfect pair of shoes can make your day, while a bad pair can make your day hell. Shoes can complete your outfit, make your rear end look great and your legs a mile long, help you cross the finish line in a marathon, show off the first pedicure of spring, keep your toes from getting squished in the mosh pit and so much more.

Most people, when finding out after surgery that their anesthesiologist had given them Sodium Pentathol prior to their operations because the doctors wanted "to find out something about the patient," and that as a result, they spoke for twelve minutes straight to the surgeons and scrub nurses, possibly revealing embarrassing or incriminating secrets about themselves, would have sued the hell out of the anesthesiologist, the surgeon, and the hospital.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we'll be posting events that are going on sale during the current week. This Tuesday post only collects the early announcements, so definitely check back on Thursday for the latest ticket news.

Fun around town, for $10 or less:

What kind of octogenarian would you like to be? Us, we’ll be Merce Cunningham please. At 89 the famous choreographer is not only still creating works, but continues in his tradition of pushing the technological envelope by combining dance with accompanying music in unique and often fantastical ways (dude’s had Radiohead compose for him. That we’d love to see). Merilyn Jackson has a wonderful article tracing some of his collaborations and technological innovations in the Inquirer, which has served as a yummy appetizer. You see, we are lucky enough to be going to see the Merce Cunningham Dance Company when they perform at the Annenberg Center tomorrow and Friday nights. And our iPods are already in a flurry of excitement.

Three weeks ago the Super Bowl heralded the end of another football season.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we'll be posting events that are going on sale during the current week. This Tuesday post only collects the early announcements, so definitely check back on Thursday for the latest ticket news.

The best of the internet, chopped into tiny bits and grilled for your enjoyment.

This weekend there are several cool dance events going down, most of them on the cheap. We were going to front-load (dance-load?) Frugal today, but then thought it might be better to devote a little more space to each. Besides, with all this slushiness, wouldn't you rather watch other people move than do so yourself?

NEXUS/foundation for today's art is a champion of local artists of all stripes; their commitment to maintain gallery space dedicated to local emerging and experimental artists has rightfully earned them a rep as a Philly art institution. The fruits of their mission will be on display tonight, as they present their new members exhibitions with an opening reception.

The kids at my high school pulled some pretty elaborate pranks back in the day. The most memorable was the kidnapping of Manny, Moe, and Jack from the neighborhood Pep Boys and their subsequent erection on the roof of the library building at our school. But never, never, never did anyone let livestock loose in the hallways, like these intrepid Northeast Philadelphia High School students did.

We guess that your reading this means that you survived Monday. Good! We started you off slowly, and without much vigor, so let's see if we can step things up a bit tonight. We have kink, espionage, and poetry. What more could a Phillyist reader ask for?

It's nasty out, but don't let the weather keep you from exploring all that this city's artisans and art curators have to offer!

Let us say up front that we buy into Virginia Woolf’s theory about women artists: it was/is often lack of opportunity, rather than lack of talent, that keeps the gender imbalance in the classic art canon holding steady. Controversy still abounds as to the placement and display of female artists, particularly whether it matters. If art is good, it is good, right, and will be recognized as such, regardless of gender. Would that it were so. However, in the midst of arguing why women are underrepresented in the artistic pantheons, we can sometimes lose sight of those women who managed to break through those barriers presented by societal and cultural expectations. One is the subject of an exhibition at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts: Philadelphia native Cecilia Beaux, who was once described by painter William Merritt Chase as “not only the greatest living woman painter, but the best that has ever lived.”

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we'll be posting events that are going on sale during the current week. This Thursday post only collects the latest announcements, so definitely check the Tuesday post for any you may have missed.

We are torn. We are not usually torn. Usually, when something makes us rather uncomfortable, we use our prerogative as a (unpaid) blogger to ignore it. We have taken great license with our Phillyist byline, in that we write about what we like and think is important; we don’t pick up on the stuff that is out of our league or seems boring to us. Hence you’ll find a lot of arty stuff, charity stuff, and even some sports stuff under the below name. However, today, we are torn.

The shapeless dough of the internet, formed into tasty pellets and baked to perfection, just for you.

“Can a computer game make you cry?”

Fun around town, for $10 or less:

Fun around town, for $10 or less:

Fun around town, for $10 or less:

Fun around town, for $10 or less: