A Great City Deserves a Great Publication

Unless you, like Fairdale Bigfoot, live under a rock, you heard the news that Gannett absolutely gutted the Courier-Journal yesterday, laying off 50 employees, 24 of them editorial staff. Goodbye Velocity, goodbye a lot of the Neighborhood coverage.  Arts and uber-local reporting... gutted.

As Roommate tweeted today: "From out here in the docks, it looks like the @courierjournal has become 'Sports Unillustrated.'"

And apologies to the terrific sports staff at the C-J, especially those I am "twitter friends" with, but yes... Roommate is right.  I don't know if any of the sports staff got the sack, but it has long irked me that when you pull up the C-J website, the very first section is sports.  Before local news. Shows you where the editorial priorities are.  And I love sports, I do. But that's embarrassing.

I'm not fool enough to believe that the C-J made that layout choice in a vacuum. I know I live in a sports-obsessed town, and most of the time I'm pleased as punch that I do. But it is a decision, and it's a terrible one in my opinion. If newspapers were all about catering to the masses, every paper would be People Magazine, or at best USA Today-- all Kardashians and Fantasy Football.

Anyway, based on the unscientific evidence of my Twitter feed, lots of Louisvillagers were just heartbroken about this decision. And I was surprised how very hard I took it myself.  I only know one of the laid-off editorial staffers (I think) personally. So this wasn't about just hurting very badly for a friend (although, I was).  And honestly, I haven't subscribed to the paper for years (before you say I'm part of the problem: [a] we all know subscription money doesn't keep papers in business and [b] I read it regularly online). I've always been disappointed with the C-J, especially coming here from New Orleans when the Times-Picayune was cranking out its post-Katrina consistent brilliance.

But I felt sad for personal reasons too. My first job out of college was as the Assistant to the Editor of this newspaper. (I'd never been to the website before. I briefly got insanely excited when I saw the archive section... but the archives start 10 years after I worked there, give or take.) In addition to running around doing crazy errands for the Diva Editor, I also worked as an entertainment reporter.  My "beat"?  Foxwoods Casino.  Highlights of my job: interviewing Tom Jones and Ted Neeley ("Jesus" from Jesus Christ Superstar), writing my only front-page piece about the music scene in Mystic, CT, and covering the Mashantucket Pequot tribe's cultural news.  I hated every part of my job except the arts reporting. I loved the arts reporting. And occasionally when I get antsy about my chosen field (as I am right now), I kick myself for not pursuing that as my career (hence, this blog).

And Gannett mauled its arts reporting today.

A great city deserves a great publication. And we just don't have one.

Normally I would say: "I may be biased because I know this person personally and can't distance myself from her work." But no. I won't add that disclaimer. One of the laid-off editorial staff was Erin Keane, and I can empirically say that she was one of the best, if not the best, writers at the C-J. Her arts reporting was grown-up, sophisticated writing for readers who were invested in the fabulous Louisville arts scene. Her articles were beautifully-conceived, well-researched, and often challenging.  I will fess up to having to employ Dictionary.com a couple of times when her diction eluded me. When I finally met her after reading her reporting for a while, I was honestly a little fan-girly.  Hell, how many times over the years have I written a theater review and linked to her review and said, "I can't say it better than Erin Keane already did"??

For the C-J to lay off its most literate and literary writer?-- it's an insult to the readership.

My heart broke for her, personally.  But my heart breaks for this city.

I'll say it again. A great city deserves a great publication. And we just don't have one.

The LEO is... fine.  I admit, I read it rarely.  I don't know what the general public sentiment is, but my gut says that it went a bit south post-Stephen George and when it went glossy (and when it lost Phillip M. Bailey to WFPL).  Louisville Magazine has a stable of solid writers but only features a handful of good articles each month.  I don't think anyone would argue with me if I said that the magazine was 85% advertising of some kind. There's some quality reporting being done on some of the local blogs, but no one in their right mind would call it quality writing.

It was a sad day for Louisville.  And a disconcerting day for me.  I never in a blue moon thought that I would remake myself as an arts reporter this late in my life, but to discover that the newspaper in my city had such a low regard for arts and local reporting... terrible.

Louisvillager wins Miss Congeniality USA

Congrats to Kia Hampton, already an award-winning singer and performer, for winning Miss Congeniality in this year's Miss USA Pageant.

Check out Kia's ReverbNation page, where you can listen to some of her music and view her bio.  Miss Kentucky USA 2011 has already won the Kentucky and Indiana Idol contest in 2006 and been featured on BET's Welcome to Dreamland television program in 2009.  (And while this isn't mentioned in her bio, it's worth noting that according to pictures/videos on the site, she also recorded a special Christmas commercial for, of course, KIA car dealers.)

Louisvillagers have been doing well with the beauty pageant circuit lately.  Alexandria Mills won Miss World last year.  And let's face it, if you can't be Miss USA, then you want to be Miss Congeniality, right?  Congrats, Kia!

Grayson Capps @ Phoenix Hill 6/25

Dear, dear readers, I love you all from the bottom of my heart. But when are you going to start believing me when I say that I have impeccable taste in music, huh?  If I say "go to this show" then REALLY, you need to go to that show.  I am not a music junkie.  I won't just go see any show.  We're blessed here in Louisville to have an abundance of great options for music-seeing.  But I'm downright picky.

As I promised Galactic at Headliners was A-MAZ-ING!  Not only did they bring the New Orleans jam-funk to Louisville, they brought Corey freaking Glover as their lead singer.  Corey Glover, folks.  Lead singer of Living Color. One of the first notable non-white, hard rock/heavy metal singer ever.  Dude went on to star in the touring production of the greatest musical of all time (Jesus Christ Superstar) singing arguably the most demanding stage role in the history of musical theater (Judas) for, like, 4 years.  Pinch me, I'm still totally in awe. Really. What a night.

And now I know why I weighed considerably less when I lived in New Orleans, despite the awesome food. I used to go out to see live NOLA music weekly.  I danced those pounds off.

So speaking of NOLA music, Grayson Capps is coming to Phoenix Hill on 6/25.  I will likely not be in town, but sweet pickles, you NEED to go see this man.  I saw him loads of times when he/we lived in New Orleans.  And he played a show at the old PourHaus here just a few months or so after Roommate and I moved here... and we bought him a drink and totally bonded over post-Katrina life in exile.  I went to see him (alone) at Phoenix Hill a couple of years later...  He's amazing.  New Orleans blues.  Killer voice.  Fabulous story teller.  And, of course, it doesn't hurt that he's beautiful to look at.

C'mon people.  Listen to me already.  I was right about Low Anthem, Trombone Shorty, Galactic... I'm right about Grayson Capps, too.  I would not lead you astray.

Andrea Davidson wins Tipperary Song of Peace Award

If you're a lover of all things British, you're an Anglophile.  But if you're a lover of all things Irish... you're what? I'm a sucker for all things Irish and have been since I was a wee child.  I grew up listening to Ma tell me Irish fairy tales and stories of the Irish rebels.  I loved it all so much that my undergraduate concentration was in modern Irish Lit (my thesis: fish & fishermen in the poetry and prose of William Butler Yeats) (I earned an A+, btw).

I don't normally like to cut and paste a whole press release, but this is something really special.  Andrea Davidson rocked my world when she opened up for Charlie Mars last summer. So lovely and talented. And now she's won a beautiful award.  Tipperary = a small city in Ireland.  And here is the press release:

Kentucky singer/songwriter Andrea Davidson was the clear winner of the Tipperary Song of Peace Final in Tipperary, Ireland on Saturday June 4th. Scoring a perfect 10 from each of the four judges, Andrea beat off strong international competition to take the top prize of €1,500 plus Tipperary Crystal Trophy. The Final was one of a number of peace related events that took place in Tipperary and was organised by Tipperary Peace Convention.
In the days prior to the Song Contest, the Tipperary International Peace Award was presented to Afghan Human Rights Activist, Dr. Sima Samar. The Song Contest Final was held in the Tipperary Excel and along with Andrea Davidson from Kentucky. U.S.A. it also featured finalists from Germany, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland. 

The song that Andrea performed in the Final was titled "Natchez Trace" and is one of a vast collection of original compositions from this talented singer/songwriter. The song was perfomed by Andrea and featured Scott Moore on fiddle.
Professionally Andrea has played well over 1,000 shows ranging from clubs to festivals and theatres. She has toured extensively and recently completed a musical residency in Santa Monica, California. 

Andrea was a very popular winner with the Tipperary audience and received a huge ovation when the result was announced and returned to the stage to perform a reprise of the winning song. She also performed the winning song at an Ecumenical Service in St. Mary's Church, Tipperary on Sunday June 5th 

During her stay in Tipperary, Andrea also performed for the puipls of Shronell National School as well as 'gigging' with the other contestants in Tony Lowry's Pub. The Best Irish Entry in the Song of Peace Contest was composed by Co. Down songwriter Ken Warke. Titled "Love is Everything", the song was performed in the final by well known Tipperary singer, Margi Maxwell and they received the Mick Tuohy Memorial Cup for being the winners of this category.

Galactic at Headliners 6/17

I tweeted and blogged relentlessly about two of the best music shows to hit Louisville this year.  If you didn't see Trombone Shorty or Low Anthem at Headliners over these past couple of months, I'm so sorry you didn't follow my advice.

Trombone Shorty was energetic, sexy, funky, and wonderful.  His album, BACKATOWN, was my favorite album of 2010.

The Low Anthem, hailing from Providence, RI, are pretty much my favorite new-ish band now, and their show at Headliners was so good that it left many members of the crowd wiping away tears. They were featured in a number of top ten lists of "Bands you need to see at Bonnaroo 2011."  Their Bonnaroo 2009 show was transcendentally amazing.  In a few weeks, they start a national tour opening for Mumford and Sons, and I swear to you, they're better than Mumford and Sons. I know that may be indy-rock heresy, but they do what Mumford and Sons do... better.  But the crowd at Headliners? Tiny.

I don't think the crowd at the Galactic show will be tiny.  First of all, they've been gaining a loyal following for around a dozen years.  But seriously folks, I do NOT lead you wrong when it comes to music-- go see Galactic on June 17 (Friday) if you like a little funk, a little jazz, and a little New Orleans infusion.  Tickets are on sale for $17 or $20 at the show.

I am SUPER picky about music, but I love me some Galactic.  Back when I lived in NOLA, a couple of the members of Galactic were parents at the school where I taught.  Every year just before Jazz Fest, they would come in and play a show for the little kids... the K-6 kids... and you've never seen pure music appreciation until you've seen a hundred or so teeny tiny girls dancing their behinds off to pure NOLA funk and jazz.  Awesome.

Can't wait.

Public Radio Rock 'n' Stroll

We love some Ben Sollee 'round these parts (read my post about meeting Sollee at HullabaLou last year, but make sure you read the comments too).  And we love our Public Radio.  This weekend, Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield presents Rock 'n' Stroll 2011-- a 5k walk around Iroquois Park followed by a concert featuring Ben Sollee and Nashville's David Mead.

From the website:

Stroll through Iroquois Park with all of your friends and fellow fans of Public Radio…When the walk/ride is over you will be treated to an outstanding performance by two WFPK  favorites!  Bike-lover and cello-slayer Ben Sollee and his full band will perform  songs from his exciting new album, Inclusions AND Nashville songwriter David Mead will open the show with his impeccable melodies.

Read more: http://www.wfpk.org/rock-n-stroll/#ixzz1PULfp9gg


The stroll and walk is $25 and includes membership to Louisville Public Media (if you don't already have one) a t-shirt, and the show.   $20 gets you access to the show alone.

Tickets are on sale now at http://www.ticketfly.com/event/38529/, earX-tacy and the front desk at Louisville Public Media. (619 S. Fourth Street)



Schedule of Events5:00pm Walkers and Bikers begin
6:30pm Walkers and Bikers admission to Amphitheater
7:00pm Doors open to the General Public
8:00pm Music Begins

Another Earth Doesn't Disappoint

So, I'm thrilled to report that William Mapother's ANOTHER EARTH did not disappoint. The film lived up to and surpassed the promise of its exquisite trailer.  And while Mapother holds down a stunning performance, the movie belongs to Brit Marling. According to Mapother at the Q&A following the event, Marling, a 26 year-old Georgetown University grad, didn't even have a SAG card when she co-wrote and filmed ANOTHER EARTH. She just wanted to be an actress, so she co-wrote this film with the director.  Her performance as the tortured Rhoda... there just aren't words for it. I don't know how awards nominations work, but good Lord if this woman isn't nominated for Best Actress left and right, there's no justice in the world.

According to Mapother, this film was made for 20% of the budget of the next cheapest film in its Sundance category, where it won a Special Jury prize and the Alfred P. Sloan feature prize for movies involving science and technology.

The last time I've seen a movie this quiet and beautiful may be when I saw ONCE.  I felt on the verge of tears for days after seeing that movie (no hyperbole there).  And I feel that way about ANOTHER EARTH, a movie about unrelenting and un-healable sorrows. It's gorgeous.

The movie opens in limited release on July 22.  Visit the official website here. STAY AWAY FROM SPOILERS.

Kentuckiana Pride Festival: June 17 & 18

After seeing ANOTHER EARTH yesterday at the Kentucky Center, Roommate and I hopped over to the Greek Festival for a quick bite. I'm not a huge fan of Greek food, but for just $5 I got a hummus and a small Greek salad that was a sufficient dinner.  And the Greek salad? Best I've ever had. I kind of want to go back today to have more-- this time I'll order a large.

But the best part of our brief stay at the Greek Festival was when the 6-piece band started to play and the dance floor filled with eager, soon-to-be-sweaty dancers of all ages.  I don't know what the Greek dances are called, but it's so nice to see that people are clearly still teaching them to the younger generations. A good quarter of the dancers were in their teens and early-twenties. Looked like the wedding scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding... is that tacky to say?

All that is to say, I loves me a festival on the Belvedere.  And during the summer it seems like there's a festival nearly every weekend.  Good for us.

The next one is the Kentuckiana Pride Festival.  The event is presented by the Kentucky Pride Foundation, whose mission states:

Kentuckiana Pride Foundation is a volunteer-based non-profit promoting the gay, lesbian, bisexual, queer/questioning and intersexed (GLBTQI) community in Kentuckiana's social, cultural and economic landscape. Each year on the Belvedere in downtown Louisville, we hold the Kentuckiana Pride Festival, a place where the GLBTQI community and its supporters can meet and celebrate, enjoying a variety of food, entertainment, and showcases from local and regional businesses and organizations.

The festivities start on June 17 at 8pm with the Festival Parade.  The parade starts at Tryangles at 209 S. Preston and makes its way down Market to Main and the Belvedere.  Friday night's festivities on the Belvedere start when the parade arrives and continue til 11p.  And they're free!

But the big day for the Festival is Saturday.  Performers start at noonish and run until 11pm or so.  I will admit to having been sucked into a couple of Ru Paul's Drag Race marathons, so I was kind of psyched to see Jade Sotomayor and Phoenix were on the bill.  Saturday's admission is $5, and there will be food and drinks and other vendors. Saturday's schedule:

12:00pm	Opening Ceremony: Pride Interfaith
1:00pm	Sibella
2:15pm	Dangerous Liaison
4:00pm	Sienna
4:45pm	Elliot Truman
5:30pm	Galaxy Girls
6:15pm	The Blue Umbrellas
7:30pm	Jenn Stout
8:45pm	La Boy Le Femme
9:00pm	Performances by: Cazwell Roxy Cottontail Adam Barta From RuPaul's Drag Race: Jade Sotomayor Phoenix

Please note, times are subject to change.

Listen Louisville, back in the day, long before I knew a dang thing about Louisville, I used to intellectually lump Tennessee & Kentucky together.  You know, like, "Tennessee... Kentucky... same diff!" Now I know that's just not true, but we do live across a border from a state that passed a law that makes it against the law to use the word "gay" in a public school classroom.  While this festival is largely aimed at the LGBTQI members of the Louisville community, you know some a**holes from other communities will be out there with their signs and their bigotry.  So, you know.... go.... whether you're LGBTQI or not.  Go to the parade, swing by the fest, bring your kids. I have a pretty strong feeling that if you're reading my blog, you know why and you know what I mean.

And enjoy a little George Takei Vs. Tennessee's "Don't Say Gay" law while you're at it.

Summer To-Do List: Swim

Let's just get this out of the way: no one really wants to see me in a bathing suit. That's cool. I'm fine with that. I had my salad days of being the girl with the smoking body.  I did. Those days are over. Maybe not for good (but probably for good), but at least for now.

But that doesn't change the fact that I want to swim. I want to hang out by a pool. And I need to make that happen this summer.

Lakeside has become my Xanadu. My Dulcinea. My Holy Grail.  Oh my sweet swimmies, I want to be invited to Lakeside just to see it. I don't have to swim. I don't have to sully your pool with my ordinary-person juices. I just want... to see it.  Awesome Louisvillager, Brigid Kaelin teaches swim classes there.  And plays gigs there.  Swoon... that just makes her 100X cooler in my eyes.

I don't want to join a gym or community center.  So I think my next best bet (indoor pools don't count, BTW) is to book a night at the Galt House, the only downtown hotel with an outdoor pool.

Or I can go to the Quarry.  Which I know nothing about but has been a looming mythologized presence for the past few summers.  When Roommate gets home from his Florida adventures, I think I will enlist him in a road trip.

Flyover Film Festival 3 & Another Earth

I'd never call myself a "film buff." That implies some level of scholarship and knowledge.  But I did just see two movies in a row on Monday (X-Men: First Class and Water for Elephants), and I'm going to another one tomorrow (Cave of Forgotten Dreams). I love movies. I probably average a movie in the theaters every two weeks or so. During the summer, it's easily once a week.

If you follow my tweets, you know that I spent the weekend with a friend I hadn't seen in fifteen years. And if you follow my tweets, you know that he, for lack of a better word, challenged me in a lot of ways. (You can go to this twitter hashtag for a lot of the story.)

I've never met anyone who changed so much that even the shadow of the person I once knew is nearly imperceptible. He's grown up to be a good man and a happy man, so there's no judgement here at all.  He's equal parts Gandhi, Ravi Shankar, and all those crazy hippy stereotypes that drive many of us nuts.  But this new man is one that has almost nothing in common with the woman I've become. Except our shared memories.

Visitor has lived so far outside of my life experience for so long that when I asked him if he had any pop culture guilty pleasures-- movies, tv, books read for entertainment pleasure only-- he had nothing.  I'm a pop culture nerd. Heck, I used to teach a course on pop culture.  He said, "My guilty pleasure is electricity." And all I could think was, "Really? Because I know that Tivo recorded a particularly exciting episode of 'Doctor Who' last night, and I wish you'd take a nap or something so I can find out what all the fuss on Twitter has been about.'"

But in the end the visit was incredibly meaningful, and I will look back on it fondly, always.  Maybe once in a lifetime do you ever have the chance to spend time with someone who has had you on a pedestal for 22 years.

His parting wish for me was that I should "treat myself better."

What he meant: You should take up yoga and qijong. You should find a spiritual healer who performs massages so you can work on the 20-something-years of pain and sadness you've stored in your muscles. You should supplement your cancer drugs with plant medicines.

What I heard: You should spend the day after he leaves in a movie theater with a giant popcorn and a giant root beer.

Because that's how I roll...

If I rolled with a little more cash, I would totally buy an all-access pass to this weekend's Flyover Film Festival.  It's only $75 for a four-day pass!  This is the third annual festival for the Louisville Film Society whose mission states:

We believe cinema art can take many forms, from the industrially-produced blockbuster to the hand-crafted experimental work.  We aim to share a vision of film as a transformative art and encourage  participation in all aspects of film culture by diverse audiences.

What I am most excited about, and what I almost certainly attend, is the area premier of ANOTHER EARTH.  I've blogged about it before; it's the fantastic-looking, very well-received sci-fi film starring our very own Louisvillager William Mapother.  And the fact that I have a mad little celebru-crush on the man actually has very little to do with my excitement about this movie.  (Although, yes, one of the event organizers sent me an email and referenced my crush... I wasn't at all embarrassed or anything!) But he will be there doing a Q&A afterwards. Seriously folks, watch the trailer... it looks SO good.

We're so lucky to live in a city that supports the arts like we do (although the Louisville Orchestra might not agree). I'm excited that we've sustained this fabulous film festival for three years.  I hope it continues to grow strong.  And I hope that next year I have better cash flow, so I can totally film-geek-out for an all-access pass.

What Makes Happy Hour Happier?

Live music, of course!

I've blogged about Alex Wright before in a wonkily-formatted blog post that disappeared on me.  Crazy that.

Anyway, tomorrow Alex is playing a happy hour gig at 6pm at Zazoo's with Dewey Kincade.  Yes, Alex is a friend, but I wouldn't steer y'all wrong.  If he wasn't great-- which he is-- I would casually ignore this show.  But you'll like him.  And it's Thursday.  Happy Hour.  Weren't you going to get happy hour drinks anyway? Of course you were.  So do it at Zazoo's and support a new member of the Louisville music scene.  And a nice guy.

Shrek: The Musical at the Kentucky Center

What has happened to me?

When I was in high school, I was crazy about musical theater.  I couldn't/can't carry a tune, but I was a hardcore dancer so there was always a place for me in every musical production. I either mouthed the words or sang softly as a member of the chorus, but if there was a dancing part... that was mine.

In college I transitioned into straight drama.  Directed OTHELLO my junior year of college.  Stage managed theater a bit.  Did a bit of acting work.  But by the time I graduated college, I thought I had figured it out:  I love plays, but musicals are dumb.

And I've carried that banner ever since: plays = good. musicals = silly.

But this year, the Broadway Across America folks have changed my perspective entirely.  I fell in love with LEGALLY BLONDE, I totally dug JERSEY BOYS... And perhaps most surprising, I thought SHREK: The Musical was adorable and absolutely fun.

SHREK is here in Louisville til Sunday. If you liked the movie, you'll love the musical.  The dragon alone is worth the price of admission.  I was worried that it would be a Disney-on-Ice-style production aimed at kids with tween-level jokes, but it's even more sophisticated and "adult" than the movie at times.

Go. Take the kids. I'd expect that kid ages 10-15 would be totally tweaked by the production.  But you really need to be an adult to get all the best jokes.  As I said, Carrie Compere as the Dragon, is worth the price of your tickets... and her curtain-call dress may be the best ball gown/red carpet dress ever.

Who knew? Right? Maybe I was wrong all along?

Need Some (Used) New Work Clothes?

... While supporting a great cause?  Go to Dress for Success' Summer Inventory Clearance Sale at the Horseshoe Casino.

I'm a big fan of Dress for Success. Not only do they provide career counseling and training for women living in poverty, but they also supply an interview suit and a week's worth of work outfits to women using their services. The lack of professional clothes should never be an obstacle to getting a new job.  Not exactly an apt analogy, but I still remember as a teenager getting a job at a diner and having to shell out $70 for a uniform before I even got my first paycheck or tips. I had to borrow money from my mom, and as my job started during off-season in a tourist town, it probably took me two weeks' of part-time work to pay her back.

The Dress for Success sale is Thursday June 9 from 5p-8p, June 10 from 2p-8p, and June 11 from 11a-3p.  The first 350 people to donate a gently used or new suit will get a $5 off coupon for Paula Deen's Buffet.  All procedes from the sale (they're reducing inventory to make room for new donations) go directly back to their programs.  No children allowed (I guess because it's in a casino?) and plus sizes are limited.

Low Anthem at Headliners 6/4

Next Saturday one of my favorite bands is coming to Headliners, and the show is only TEN BUCKS!  If you're looking for a totally transcendant way to spend your June 4th, or you just like discovering beautiful music, I hope you'll join me at the Low Anthem show.

I first discovered Low Anthem (who hail from Providence RI, a mere 45 minutes from my hometown) when they opened for Lisa Hannigan at the 930 Listening Room back in 2009.  I loved Hannigan, but I was floored by the hymn-y, sea-chanty-y, Americana of Low Anthem.  The Avett Brothers and the Decemberists (who put on an amazing show at Iroquois Amphitheater last month) do something like what Low Anthem does, but I still think Low Anthem does it better.   

(PSA: that Lisa Hannigan/Low Anthem show was the first and only time I will ever darken the doorstep of the 930 Listening Room.  At the time of the concert, I did not know much about the 930-Sojourn Church connection. Sojourn is a conservative Christian organization cloaked in hipster, stylish, artsy, twentysomething chic. Vile anti-gay stuff going on there. I don't care if their next show features Leonard Cohen with Bono as an opening act, I won't go. You shouldn't either.)

Saw Low Anthem again at Bonnaroo 2009 in the middle of a middle of the night downpour.  Loads of Bonnaroo recaps I saw cited that show as one of the best of the festival. Huge and beautiful and quirky and sweet.  Love them.

I promise you, I don't blog mediocre music.  I'm not a huge music person in general, but when I get behind a band, you know they're off the charts (I tweeted relentlessly about Trombone Shorty at Headliners last month, and everyone who went had an ecstatic experience!).

Low Anthem
Headliners
June 4, 9pm $10

Summer To-Do List: Lunch!

By the time I get from my digs in the Meatspace Workplace to the cafeteria, I have maybe twenty-five minutes to eat, if I hustle my buns down there. Now, one of the big benefits of my job is we have one of the best cafeterias in the city. Not only that but the lunch ladies and dudes are pretty much the nicest, friendliest, most fun people in the establishment. AND my lunch is free (or, it's part of my "yearly contract," I suppose. I get paid in lunch!). So this is not me bemoaning my workaday lunch situation, at all.

But one of the things I most look forward to each summer is the freedom to lunch at will!

A few places on my lunch list:

Speaking of "the nicest people," I just love the folks at Joe Davola's.  Yeah, I can't really stand Seinfeld, but I'll forgive them that.  Their prices are good.  Their portions are generous.  And their cream of mushroom soup is my favorite soup in the city.

My second favorite soup is a recent find.  The tomato dill soup at The Cafe is so good I went there every Saturday for a month just to have it (they're only open for lunch, and they're not open on Sundays).  What a funny and quirky place (and it's hard to find! Worst case scenario: park by Louisville Stoneware and just wander around by foot til you find it!).  It's eclectic flea-market decor reflects its past location in the old Louisville Antiques Mall on Broadway (RIP). They have a lovely patio where you can watch the trains going by overhead.  Definitely a place to stop on a cool afternoon.  And the cookies... yum!

Over at Consuming Louisville, Michelle recently blogged a couple of times about Please and Thank You on Market. I haven't checked it out yet, but it might be my first lunch stop this summer (hoping Michelle will join me and maybe treat me to a tour of ParkVu, HQ of Music WithMe). The reason I'm so hot to try this place is that they have very "me" lunch options, like grapes and cheese.

Believe it or not, even though I've blogged about Lil Cheezer's grilled cheese truck a couple of times and even hosted an awesome guest blog from the owner, Matt, I still haven't tried them out.  One night I did swing by to say hi, and Roommate had a great grilled cheese, but this summer I plan on making friends with Matt & crew.

Last time I went out with my lunching ladies, we went to the (at the time) newly-opened Ghyslain (another link to Consuming Louisville).  We were a big party, but the folks were super attentive and eager to answer questions.  The food was very good (next time, I'm going to have the Mediterranean plate, which looked phenomenal), and although I'm not a sweet-eater, I loved ogling their amazing desserts and chocolates selections. But mostly, I can't wait to return because I just want to move in there. It's gorgeous! There's something about the particular blue that their walls are painted that makes me want to bring a book and a blanket and order some coffee and just cuddle up for an afternoon (yes, I know that would be frowned upon). But you know what I will bring next time I go? My paint chip fan. So I can figure out just what the blue is... my living room needs painting.

Now I'm all excited and can't wait to get through the next week of being pretty much tied to the Meatspace Workplace cafeteria (although I will miss my lunch ladies and dudes over the summer!).  Lunch!  What a luxury! Want to lunch with me? Hit me up (or HMU, as the kids say)!

Summer To-Do List: Louisville MEGA Cavern

Welcome back to the summer to-do list. Last time I blogged about something practical: a clothing resale shop called Clothes Mentor (that's an odd name, isn't it?) Today I have something more fun in mind.

I can't believe I haven't been to the MEGA Cavern yet.  I'm a cave nut.  I'm the opposite of claustrophobic.

One of the best-- if not the best-- memories I have is spelunking in an underground cave in New Zealand. It was a six-hour expedition, and we were outfitted in scuba suits under jumpsuits, helmets with headlights, knee pads, elbow pads.

Rappelling down underground waterfalls.  Swimming underwater through underground tunnels, not knowing if the tunnel would end before you ran out of breath.  Drinking hot cocoa, halfway through, in a cave lit by glow-worms. Ascending, finally, at the end of the expedition by climbing an underground cliff-face and out of a literal hole in the ground and emerging in a grassy meadow full of cows.

Night had fallen when we were in the cave, and when we squiggled out of the narrow hole, we were confronted by a night as dark as the cave, lit only by the brightest field of stars I've ever seen.  Amazing.

Of course, Louisville MEGA Cavern is nothing like that. Not really sure what those caps are all about in "MEGA."  Nor have I ever understood the difference between caves and caverns.  But there are 17 miles of caverns located under Louisville.  Many of them man-made, at that!  And Louisville MEGA Caverns will take you on a Jeep tour of many of them. And if you "check in" on Facebook and show them you've checked in you get $1 off your ticket price.

So, that's totally on my Summer To-Do list.  Go visit Louisville MEGA Caverns.

Bless their hearts, but here's something that's NOT on my To-Do list: in July they will open a huge, underground Mega-Zipline.  Awesome, original, exciting.  And I'll tell you more about it when I hear more about it.

But I will NOT be giving it a test run.  My fear of heights is insurmountable.  Really.  Paralyzing. Awful. I can't even climb a ladder to paint the tops of my 12' walls. Really.

That being said... on that same trip to New Zealand, I bungee jumped off the first commercial bungee jump spot in the world-- and the second highest at the time-- on the bridge above the Kawarau River with the AJ Hackett Company.  Yes, I was trying to impress a guy.  No, it didn't work... at that moment (probably because I cried and swore like a crab boat captain on the Bering Sea during the whole experience). But I did end up dating him a couple of months later.  Hey, I was in my stupid twenties. It is what it is.

Technical Difficulties

Today is just an ugly day tech-wise. My email got hijacked-- I'm so sorry, I truly DON'T believe you need Viagra-- and now I can't get my new domain registry to forward properly.

And I'm swamped at the Meatspace Workplace today.

Just know that I didn't get raptured.  I'm just all bungled up.

thanks for your patience

Summer To-Do List: Clothes Mentor

It's beginning to look a lot like Summ-er, every-where you go... 

Why have I had Christmas songs in my head all week?  Tonight's carol is better than last night's, which was: Summer is coming, this Lou has gotten fat/Please Lawd let no body else notice that./If you haven't got a diet, some exercise will do./ If you're unwilling to exercise, then God bless you."


Seriously. I know you didn't ask for a glimpse into my odd little noggin, but there you are.

Anyway, summer approaches, and I am working on my summer to-do list. Lest you think I'm an organized, ambitious planner, I just told someone on Twitter that I will make this list tonight and consult it again on August 16 and then sink into a deep depression.  At least, that's how previous years' lists have gone.  Best of intentions... yadda yadda.

But I wanted to share some Louisville things that are on my to-do list.  (If I ever manage to complete a majority of things on my summer to-do lists, I'm gonna start calling them "summer ta-dah! lists.")

So tonight I'll start with: Sell some clothes to Clothes Mentor.

I don't iron.  Like, ever.  I own an iron and a steamer, but not an ironing board.  So I made the decision this year to donate or sell any item of casual summer clothes that doesn't come out of the dryer ready to wear.  I'll still iron or steam the fancy stuff.  But pants, skirts, shirts that come out of the dryer accordion-pleated?  Gone.  I estimate that I have marked 25% of my summer wardrobe for donation or sale.

Good news:  the blog 502 Fashion, brought this info to my attention-- the first women's clothing resale shop is opening up in St. Matthews.  It's called Clothes Mentor, and it differs from a consignment shop because they pay you up front for the clothes. Which I love. I've had some really shady dealings with consignment shops, locally.  See more about Clothes Mentor over at 502 Fashion.  And while you're at it, check out the rest of the blog.  Good, fun stuff.

NTDWL: Feeling Rapturous

Nothing to Do With Louisville... really.

All this talk about the Rapture on May 21...

I ain't buying it.  Hooey, I say.

But in case it isn't, Gentle Readers, thanks for reading my blog. For the first time.  For the past four years.

From what I understand, the fundamental Christians behind this May 21 prediction believe that a very select few, 3% of the world population-- all of whom, I assume, believe in "their" God-- will be whisked away to party with Jesus on Saturday.  And by "party with," I mean party sans alcohol, dancing, sex, drugs, rock and roll, and Obamacare.  The rest of us will live another six months or so, plagued by natural disasters, pestilence, riots, and turmoil.  Otherwise known as... your average week in 2011.

Then we all get sent to hell.

I say "the rest of us" because I don't really know any fundamental Christians or people who believe this rapture stuff.

BUT, if there IS a rapture, I believe those who will be raptured will NOT just be those folks who believe in the fundies' God.  If there is a rapture (and therefore a God), I believe that She/He will rapture only the truly, truly Good people in the world.

So, Grandma Lou and Michelle Jones, I will miss you very much come 6:01pm on May 21.  Love you both and God(seeing we know He/She exists at that point)speed on your voyage.

The rest of you? Hope y'all get good drugs for your pestilence.

Walden's Shakespeare Festival

This is a bit late to the game, so I will be brief.

Y'all know I love me some Walden Theatre.  It's a treasure.  A local treasure.

This week, I've been to two of the three plays in their annual Shakespeare Festival, and I have been charmed and amused and thoroughly entertained.

Yesterday, I saw OTHELLO.  I know OTHELLO like the back of my hand.  I directed the play during the summer after my junior year at the Columbia Outdoor Shakespeare Festival in New York City.  Walden's production was spot on.  The highlight of the show was the young man who portrayed Iago, easily the most complicated character in all of Shakespeare's works.  Stunning work.  Excellent work by all the actors who portrayed leads, especially Roderigo, Emilia, and Othello.

Tonight I saw TWELFTH NIGHT.  This gender-bending comedy's comedy was made more comedic by the decision to cast only girls.  Hilarious.  Sometimes a bit over-the-top, but as an audience at Walden, it's important to always understand that Walden actors are still in training.  I like to see a young actor go for it BIG; time and training will teach him or her (her in this case-- several hers) to rein it in.  But this cast's Viola? Brilliant.  Gentle and subtle and funny as heck.

The third play is ANTONY & CLEOPATRA, which I may miss.  I'm bummed because I admire the director, Alec Volz.

This is the last week.  Go see a show or two. You won't be sorry. All plays are at the Victor Jory Theater at Actors Theatre.  Call the box office for tickets.

Othello dir. Charlie Sexton
May 14, 15 @ 2pm
May 17, 20, 22 @7:30pm
Twelfth Night dir. Barrett Cooper
May 13, 15, 18, 21 @7:30
May 22 @2pm
Antony & Cleopatra dir. Alec Volz
May 12, 14, 16, 19 @7:30
May 21 @ 2pm

Friday the 13th: Lucky if you Love Music (repost)

Lou's note: Feeling a little deja vu here?  Yeah, sorry.  During last week's Blogger blackout, somehow this blog post totally disappeared.  So I'm just posting it again after the fact.  Thank you so much to Laura Ellis who happened to have the post saved in her Google Reader.  I love Google Reader.  And I love Laura Ellis!  

By the way, the show was GREAT.  And I LOVE that it was great because it sucks when you have to lie to friends and say you enjoyed their music when you really didn't.  Seriously, I would go out of my way to see Alex Wright perform now even if he wasn't the husband of a friend.  :)

Clearly something is still "off" with Blogger because the formatting of this is way wonky.  Sorry, y'all.

I hate to repeat stuff that Michelle blogs about over at Consuming
Louisville because I figure if you're reading my blog, you're sure as
hell reading her blog, amirite?  But we like Alex, so I'm throwing in
a extra plug for the  Alex Wright CD Wrap Party at Zazoo's.

Alex is a singer-songwriter and all-around good guy (who has excellent
taste in women) who moved to Louisville from NYC a little while ago. I
heard his lovely voice at a house party he had for a
fellow-NYC-singer-songwriter (whose name escapes me right now), and
I've listened to the tracks available online.  Good stuff.  Here's his
bio:

Alex Wright grew up singing and playing music with his family ineastern Kentucky. He started performing in churches at the age of 4and continued to play music with friends and family into his teens inAppalachia. He learned to harmonize with anyone and to make up wordsif he forgot the real ones. From this early musical experience, hedeveloped a lifelong love and appreciation of many musical genres,from bluegrass to rock to opera. He began writing music in high schoolwith his first band and continued through the long dark years of hispostgraduate education, when his ability to perform music was limited.He moved to New York City in 2001. The long subway rides gave him thetime to think about music again and he began honing and performingsongs privately for friends and family. Family circumstances prompteda move to Louisville Kentucky in 2009. A chance meeting with DeweyKincade, a brilliant songwriter and performer, pointed him in thedirection of C.B Sound studio in Goshen, KY where he has happily madea second home. His debut album is due out in early 2011.

According to Alex's head cheerleader, "The show starts at 9pm with an
acoustic set by C.T. Robinson (from the band Bad Road Pony), then a
full band set from Alex around 10pm, followed by a full band set from
Dewey Kincade [who produced the album] with Alex on bass."

Alex's album is called FEELING THE PULL.  I've never been to Zazzoo's,
but it's not far from Frankfort & Lexington Aves (102 Bauer) and it's
a bar and grill that's open til 4am.

Hope to see you there!

It's Fun To Answer Questions about Drinking

One of the funniest people on Twitter (whose tweets are locked, sorry y'all) asked if I would mind posting about a survey she's doing for work.  I figure, she's entertained me all these months, I owe her that.  So, go answer some questions about drinking for Miss @lesil.  And maybe if you're super nice, she'll accept you as a Twitter pal.  You'll be glad she did.

Her survey is for a start-up brewery, so let's support our local adult beverage providers, shall we?  Take the survey here.

Harry Shearer brings THE BIG UNEASY to Village 8

As a rabid cheerleader for the city of Louisville, I sometimes feel a little bad that I still self-identify as a "New Orleans ex-pat." But I do. It'll be four more years before I've lived in Louisville as long as I lived in Louisiana, and I imagine it'll be a few more years after that before I consider dropping the ex-pat identity.  And frankly, maybe I never will.

But one of the many many things I love about Louisville is this: Louisville loves New Orleans.

So, it's appropriate-- and awesome-- that Village 8 is hosting an appearance by Harry Shearer and a screening of his documentary THE BIG UNEASY.

Shearer created THE BIG UNEASY in part due to the fact that the media and our politicians have perpetuated the myth that the New Orleans flood was a "natural disaster" caused by Katrina.  People will argue otherwise, but in Shearer's mind (and in my mind and in the minds of-- I'd venture to say-- MOST New Orleanians) and according to multiple independent investigations, the flood was a man-made disaster caused by design and construction flaws in the antiquated and insufficient levee systems.  The film goes on to investigate similar flawed levee systems protecting many other major American cities and their potential for failure.  Read Shearer's filmmaker's statements here.

THE BIG UNEASY has received overwhelmingly positive reviews and has been featured at and won awards at many of the most prestigious film festivals.  It plays at Village 8 from May 13-19, but Shearer himself will conduct a Q&A after the 7pm May 16 showing.  Tickets are a measly $5 and are on sale now.

Help me sell out this event, Louisvillagers! Let's show New Orleans how much Louisville loves her.  And let's prove that Louisville, unlike-- sigh-- the rest of the country it seems sometimes, hasn't forgotten the flood or the many people STILL suffering in New Orleans.

BTW: the website for the film features fantastic resources.  Check it out here.

Guest Post: Matt from Li'l Cheezers Explains!

Update: When this was originally posted, I titled it "Mike from Li'l Cheezers..." The man's name is Matt.  Geez Louise, Lou.  It was right there in the email.  My apologies to Matt.  Matt says this happens all the time, for some reason... 


A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about Li'l Cheezers, the new grilled cheese truck making the rounds in the city.  I'd watched the business develop via their Facebook & Twitter posts, and I was-- as many people were-- dismayed when I saw that they'd hit a red-tape wall regarding city ordinances.  I emailed the folks at Li'l Cheezers and asked them for the skinny.  But they were, understandably, too busy to be able to respond at the time.  Since then, Li'l Cheezers has pushed through the frustrating blocks and the truck is up and running and routinely selling out!  Fabulous news!  Now that the bureaucratic nightmare is mostly over, Matt Davis was nice enough to drop me a lengthy email with the Li'l Cheezers story.  With his permission, I reproduce the story here:

Basically (if basic is even possible) what happened was that 3 years ago an ordinance was passed to regulate pop up vendors on the side of the road selling swap meet Nikes and fake Persian rugs. They were also selling food and anything else they could to make money. By the addition of the word "food" in that vendor ordinance the regulating agencies took it upon themselves to police up all mobile food vendors that weren't compliant with the local vendor ordinances. Unknowingly infringing upon liberties given these mobile food vendors by the Health Department which is a state entity. Local trumped state for about 3 years and that was clearly not the way its supposed to work. Once that was realized by the Mayor's Policy Analyst he called the IPL and basically got the problem solved. The Inspections, Permits and Licenses division and more specifically the division of Alcohol and Beverage control are still charged with making sure we are permitted properly by the health department and we are doing everything we are supposed to be doing but we are no longer required to meet the requirements of the local ordinance regulating Stationary and Mobile Vendors and Peddlers as long as we are legal with the health department.

There were other concerns as well like the competition that we give to brick and mortar establishments but I will not apologize for having a different concept. Qdoba doesn't apologize to Taco Bell, and no one is crying about the unmanned Redbox movie rental cabinets across the street from the closed-down Blockbusters. I am sure they didn't have to have a meeting at the Mayor's office and they took jobs and industry from the community. And is that money local? It would seem to me that anything taking jobs away from the area ought to be pumping as much money back into the local community as possible.

Primarily I think food trucks got a bad rap because they are hard to regulate, they can move anywhere, and if you aren't paying attention they could potentially sell anything, and I recognize that as a problem. But ANY business can do that and the daily operational practices of a business are only as good as the owner and employees of said business. I am a 15 year EMS veteran both civilian and military, a homeowner, taxpayer, father, and husband. I bring an ethical standard to my business practices that are without question. I am not trying to sit in front of a restaurant and undercut your prices and steal business. I don't want to go where the food IS; I want to go where the food ISN'T like industrial parks, office parks, and construction sites. People might only get 30 minutes for lunch and that leaves 4 options: bring it from home, raid the vending machines, skip lunch or race to the closest fast food joint and slam your food on the way back to work. If an option is in the parking lot of an office or industrial park and it provides a quick and easy food option within walking distance, then it gives employees a chance to sit, converse, digest, and clock back in on time. Happy employees are much more productive employees and that's important especially in direct customer contact based services.

Beyond that, late night bar crowds are our bread and butter on the weekends. I am not hurting any local business by sitting near 3 or 4 bars with no 3am food options close by. If having a food truck there keeps one drunkard from making a run for the border then the contribution these trucks make are even more lucrative than sales tax revenue.

So it would seem that the problem is solved for now and we have been doing excellent. I am so thrilled with all the positive response from the concept, the food and the rally of support for our culinary contribution. Unlike EMS, now I see smiles on faces when we show up, I see people happy about our presence and I see people raving about the food. I couldn't ask for a better response with over 600 Facebook and Twitter followers in the first 2 weeks and the location offers rolling in. And the press.... I don't even know where it is all coming from. All over the internet, newspapers and word of mouth is amazing.

Thank you so much to Matt-- I don't know him personally, but I love his story, and his commitment to all things local and ethical.  Haven't tried Li'l Cheezers, but as soon as we get a spate of better weather, I will track down the truck-- cheese and bread are my two of my favorite food groups (if only he served bourbon... nirvana!).  You can find the Li'l Cheezers food truck by following them on Twitter (@lilcheezers).  Or just keep an eye out for the Spongebob-yellow truck!  Good luck, Mike!

Trailer for ANOTHER EARTH: Mapother Stars

Holy cow!  Well, y'all know I have a little celebrity crush on local actor William Mapother (Ethan from LOST, yeah yeah sure... but he's been grand in everything I've seen him in. Including GLEN GARRY GLENROSS at Actors.

Well, the official trailer for his award winning Sundance 2010 film, ANOTHER EARTH is out.  Back when I first mentioned this film, I said, "A Louisvillager AND sci fi?  Love!"

I had no idea.  This looks astonishing.  Wow.  Beautiful.  Now I really can't wait.

Speaking of Mapother.... And kids, if you follow me on Twitter (@loueyville), you already know this story... I totally let you folks down.  When Roommate and I saw BOB at Actors Theater, I sat RIGHT IN FRONT of the lovely Mr. Mapother.  And you know what I said to him?  Nothing.  I said nothing.  Have had a crush on the man for years, and I said nothing.  Because that's how I roll.  (See: the first paragraph of this post)

Keillor & Collins at the Kentucky Center

Garrison Keillor is a polarizing figure.  There are people I love and respect with every ounce of my being who think Keillor is odious. I, on the other hand, have a huge, massive, fan-girl crush on the man.  Love him, love him, love him. Eat him up with a spoon. Good gravy, when he announced he'll be retiring soon, I fell into a catatonic gloom.

When I first met Roommate (nine years ago this May!), we instantly bonded over our mutual love of the tv show Ed and of Prairie Home Companion. Together we've made two pilgrimages to St. Paul to see PHC live, and we saw PHC when it came to New Orleans.

One of the most memorable nights of my life was on New Year's Eve just after Katrina.  Roommate and I decided to splurge, and we bought tickets to Keillor's New Year's Eve dinner and show up in St. Paul.  Keillor, ever the good host, made his rounds during dinner to all the tables.  And when when he found out we were from New Orleans (and had met him briefly during his New Orleans show), he spent extra time with us.  It just felt so special.  And then the show itself? Brilliant and beautiful and moving and seriously one of the best ways I can think of to ring in the new year.  A new year after such a damned awful year.  And perhaps the best part of that night? Billy Collins.

On Thursday, Garrison Keillor will interview Billy Collins at the Kentucky Center.  Collins was our Poet Laureate from 2001-03 and is seriously the most accessible, enjoyable living American poet, in my most humble and perhaps limited opinion.  You don't like poetry, you say?  You'll like Collins.  He's charming and smart and funny, and while I have a super special place in my heart for 2004-06 Laureate Ted Kooser (what a nice guy... and if you were on his mailing list, you got a love poem every Valentine's Day... swoon),  Collins may be my favorite living Laureate.

I bought my tickets as soon as the event was announced.  Which turned out to be a good thing because the event has been so popular, they're now simulcasting it to other theaters.  So go.  Seriously.  Go.

BTW: Who is our current Laureate? Kay Ryan. Who wrote a poem that was on my fridge for years and which comforted me during the loss of some of the most important people in my life.  Read "Things Shouldn't Be So Hard" here on Keillor's "Writers' Almanac" web page.  

Lil Cheezers: Street Food in Louisville

I've been watching the Lil Cheezers food truck story unfold on Facebook and Twitter for a while now.  Watched their excitement grow as the gourmet grilled cheese truck came together and watched their frustration mount when they hit a permitting wall.  I even contacted them to get more of the saga, but they wrote me back a polite "we're awfully busy, get back to you soon."

I'm not entirely sure how the permitting ordeal played out, but on Facebook they were very complimentary of the folks in Mayor Fischer's office.  And they've been out, slinging their grilled cheeses, the past couple of weekends.

Food trucks and street food are wicked hip these days, and folks in Louisville seem to be clamoring for a more vibrant local street food scene.  Tonight the NYT article about late night street food "raves" in San Francisco is burning up local Twitter.  And I know that there's a new "street food restaurant" opening up in the rebuilt old Mimosa building on Bardstown.  A while back, a local entrepreneur held a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign to open Morels Food Truck, an all-vegan operation.  I know I've heard something about a Mexican food truck too...

I'm really not familiar with the idea of "street food."  I lived in NYC for five years, and the only things I ate out of vehicles were hot dogs, donuts, and ice cream.  But I'm more than willing to accept that there is a street food vacuum here in Louisville that's slowly being filled.  We wish Lil Cheezers all the best!

Lil Cheezers' menu looks delish and reasonable.  While all their specialty sandwiches are appealing, I'd be more than happy with a $5 grilled brie sandwich, straight up, no add-ins.

They'll be at Record Store Day (something not-Thunder) on Saturday the 16th at Ear X-tacy from 9am-10p.  Last gig they had, they sold out before their time was up, so I recommend going early!  Can't wait to try it out.

Louisville Little Bit 1: Jack Fry's

When did I get so shy? I remember being something of a brazen badass when I was a teenager.  But as an adult, I'm definitely socially... well, back in the day we used to say "socially retarded," so I am the less-repulsive synonym of that.

Last night, I volunteered at the Louisville Public Media pledge drive, and I didn't introduce myself to a soul there.  Just did the answering phones thing (which was monumentally painful for me; I am so phone adverse that the only reason I HAVE a phone is that Mama Lou won't email or text) and ducked out.  I did, however, feel compelled to chime in on one conversation.

A lovely Bellarmine freshman (so nice to see so many young people volunteering!) was saying that she and her friends wanted to get all dolled-up and go out someplace super fancy for a friend's birthday... on a freshman budget.  And when she said something about her male friends wanting to wear their seersucker suits, I said: "Jack Fry's."  She'd never heard of the place and wanted a description, so I said: "It looks like somewhere Sinatra would've hung out."  She picked up her phone and made a reservation right then.

And that made me remember an idea I had for this blog.

The only New Year's Resolution that I've mostly kept is that I wanted to try new (to me) restaurants more.  Because we live in the most awesome, restaurant-heavy neighborhood in the city, Roommate and I tend to get in ruts.  So the goal was to branch out.  Eschew the old faithfuls for new untrieds.  The problem is: so many of the restaurants we haven't tried aren't really in our budget.  What to do?

Well, there's no rule that says that in order to go to a new restaurant you have to really eat there.  Right? I'm not a (groan) foodie.  I'm not a food critic.  I don't have to taste a whole bunch of things to decide whether or not I like a place. The point is to soak up the atmosphere and maybe have a little bit of something.

So every once in a while I will post a Louisville Little Bit where I tell you about how to get in and out of a restaurant that might normally be a budget-buster for a modest amount of cash.

Louisville Little Bit 1: Jack Fry's

Jack Fry's is one of the closest restaurants to my house.  And I've only been there twice.  Well, three times now. I've known full well that Fry's has very reasonably priced burgers, and I've heard many times that their burgers are among the best in the city.... but for some reason, I've avoided the place because I'd held in my head their $34 steaks and $32 fish dishes.  It just screamed "special occasion" or "important night out" to me.

As I said, Jack Fry's looks like a place where Sinatra would've felt quite at home.  Live music most evenings. Dark. Old pictures on the wall.  Fry's was established in 1933, and it probably hasn't changed much since, even though it changed hands from the original owners to a long-time employee in 2003.

When you live in this neighborhood, Jack Fry's is synonymous with "good smells."  Walk by Fry's during dinner hour when you're hungry, and the smell of cooking food is almost unbearable.

A few months ago, I got a bug up my butt to have a really killer burger.  And after hemming and hawing for a while-- it was a very ordinary night, a Wednesday or a Thursday-- somehow Roommate and I decided on Jack Fry's.  This was shortly after Roommate's heart attack, and we figured that if he was going to splurge on something less-than-good for him, it might as well be fantastic.

And I'll never hem and haw over Jack Fry's again.  What a delightful-- and fairly reasonable-- special night!  Their burgers are all they're cracked up to be and under $10!  The service was exceptional.  When I heard that one of the specials of the day came with brussel sprouts (one of my favorites) and asked if I could sub the sprouts for the burger's fries, the waitress didn't bat an eyelash.

Manhattans (my cocktail of choice) are reasonably-priced and delicious.  There are a few bottles of wine under $30.  And when it comes to atmosphere, between the decor and the live jazz... Jack Fry's can make an ordinary Thursday night feel like a special occasion.

One of the things I like most about Jack Fry's is that it is as swanky as you want it to be.  I didn't feel uncomfortable at all in jeans and a sweater.  I'd feel right at home in a cocktail dress.

A cocktail at the bar along with a burger or an appetizer... a little bit of Jack Fry's and you can get out of there for under the cost of their $34 steak!

Show Public Radio Some Love!

I moved to Louisville nearly five years ago.  (Side note: I just realized that at this point I have lived in Casa Lou longer than I've lived in any one dwelling since I was a child.  Huh. Wild.) Since that time I have listened to only two radio stations in the city: WFPK and WFPL.**

Louisville's Public Radio is one of my top ten favorite things about this city. Hell, I lived in NYC for five years, and I don't think their public radio is anywhere near as good.  We're so damned lucky to have WFPL and WFPK (and I'm sure we're lucky to have WUOL; it's just not my thing).  Waterfront Wednesdays, the whole news team at WFPL, Laura Shine (who doesn't have a HUGE girl-crush on Laura Shine?), and of course all the usual great NPR stuff.  

The C-J recently did a good article about local public radio and the political scene.  Check it out here. 

Anyway, there is no way I could possibly pledge what I owe to Louisville Public Media, so I volunteered to answer phone during their fund drive.  You should too.  Or better yet, dig deep and pledge at 502-814-6565 or online. 

**That statement is 99.99% accurate.  Sometimes if Roommate and I are in the car and a Reds game is on, we'll listen to sports radio.  And sometimes if I can't sleep, I listen to Coast-to-Coast with George Noory because, shit, I want to believe!

Comedy/Tragedy Face: Actors Theater Late Seating

Today's blog about Actors Theater's April Late Seating is brought to you by the Comedy/Tragedy face. 


This Friday (April 15) is Late Seating at Actors.  Doors open at 10p. The show begins at 10:30p.  And get your tickets in advance because these shows often sell out.  (And this one likely will.)  Performers include music from Adventure, performances by Le Petomane and Johnny Dobring, and an audience-generated art project.  There will also be give-aways, a cash bar, and all kinds of other fun.  That's the happy, Comedy face part.


I've only made it to one Late Seating-- the one on the rooftop of the garage with the Pass back in Fall 2010, and it was one of my favorite nights in Louisville. I've also tried to go to two more, but they sold out.  I promised myself after the last sold-out show I missed that I would try to get to as many Late Seatings as possible...


So now the sad news (Tragedy face) from Actors' press release:  


For over 5 years and 20 successful performances, the Late Seating has showcased more than 80 local artists and entertained more than 3600 patrons. April's lineup marks the Late Seating's final program of the season and with this Actors Theatre today announced that the Late Seating Co-producers: Mike Brookes, Cathy Colliver, Matt Dobson, Paul Doyle and Emily Ruddock, will retire as creative and logistical curators of the series.... Late Seating will now enter a hiatus following the April 15^th performance. Actors will reconsider the series upon the arrival of its soon to be appointed Artistic Director. (emphasis mine)


Here's hoping Actors brings back Late Seating quick and in a hurry.  We wish Brookes, Colliver, Dobson, Doyle, and Ruddock the best and thank them for a great series.  And get those tickets early, kids.  Once word gets out that this could be the last Late Seating in a while, it's sure to sell out.

Bats and Horses... upcoming events!

So college basketball season is over, and Roommate is in mourning.  That UCONN-Butler game was awful, but the women's Texas A&M vs. Notre Dame game more than made up for it.


One door closes, and another door opens... the Louisville Bats baseball season starts this Thursday, April 7 with a series against Toledo.  I couldn't be more excited.  The weather has promised to be nice, and it's still my spring break.  Someone who doesn't know me very well (yet) asked me if I planned to be at opening day for the Bats... and he was genuinely taken aback by my response.  I didn't mean to rock the "are you crazy??" face.  But I guess I did.  I will be there with proverbial bells on, folks.  And I have no doubt, win or lose, it will be a highlight of my spring vacation.


In other sporting news...


Churchill has announced that its first day of Spring Meet will be under the lights.  April 30 at 6pm with an 11-card race.  Personally, I have somehow missed ALL of Churchill's under the lights programs, so I am super excited for this.  General admission for Downs After Dark is $10. The Downs have planned more After Dark events have been planned for June 17 & 24 and July 1.


In addition to the After Dark nights, Churchill has also released their programme for Friday night concerts in the paddock.  According to their website the line up looks like this:

• May 13: The Villebillies (eclectic rap, rock and other genres);

• May 20: Keller Williams (combines elements of bluegrass, folk, alternative rock and other genres);

• May 27: Dawn Landes and the Hounds (country/folk and indie-rock);

• June 3: Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons (indie-rock);

• June 10: Wax Fang (experimental psychedelic rock).

General admission for these race dates will be $3 until 7 p.m. but will increase to $10 after that time. Admission will be free on May 13.

Read more: Churchill Downs starting spring meet under lights, launching concert series | Business First 

Humana Fest 35: Sweet

This is the second year in a row that, thanks to the generosity of the folks at Actors Theater, I've been able to see every Humana Festival play (I still think we should earn merit badges for these sort of achievements).

Humana Festival is one of the great joys in my life.  And this year's generally stellar line-up has confirmed that this is truly the "most wonderful time of the year" in Louisville.  (I know I sometimes say that about Bats Season, but Bats Season lasts too long to really fit that moniker... it's just that in the dead of winter, when Bats Season feels synonymous with "temperate temperatures" and "sitting outside with a beer and good friends," Bats Season feels so darned magical.)  Any Louisvillager with a drop of theater-geek blood in them should feel uncommonly blessed to live in the city that is home to this amazing festival of New American Plays.

This year's festival has seemed a little less diverse than previous festivals.  It's leaned toward the narrative plays and has featured fewer abstract, experimental works.  No complaints here, I guess.  While some of my favorite plays from last year's Festival were the more abstract ones (METHOD GUN and FISSURES immediately come to mind), and at least one of my least favorites was a narrative (yeah... GROUND... hm), narrative plays tend to appeal to a wider audience.

But if there has been a fairly consistent common denominator among the Humana Festival plays this year, it might be this: sweetness.  The best of the plays have all featured tender, loving, sweet portrayals of complicated characters.

Most notably, EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS AND HIT THEM starred three characters (and only three characters) who were fleshed out by the playwright (A. Rey Pamatmat) with beautiful care and respect.  When I left that play, I told Roommate, "I think I just fell in love with a 16 year old gay nerd.  Is that wrong?" (I was speaking of Benji-- if you didn't fall in love with him, you most certainly wanted to adopt him, right?)

BOB, too, gave us characters-- centrally, Bob himself, but support characters, too-- worthy of our love.  Through Bob's rise and fall and rise and fall and rise again, actor Jeffrey Binder's deep connection to his character kept us invested and rooting for him, even during the ugly moments.  The four-person chorus, who played all the support characters, morphed themselves into (and out of) complex people in the blink of an eye-- so many of whom drew the audience's genuine care and concern.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the tragedy that draws Katha and Ryu into their "not-cult" in MAPLE AND VINE felt absolutely authentic, tragic but sweet.  ELEMENO PEA features the most abrasive characters of the Festival, but when it all comes to a head, the play is really about Devon (played by the delightful Cassie Beck who was the best thing about last Festival's CHERRY SISTERS) who has made very ordinary-- haven't we all done stupid sh*t for love?-- mistakes that are laid bare in the most sympathetic way.  And DEVIL AT NOON, while being the most experimental show of the Festival, still set forth some of the most authentically wrought and deeply relatable characters of all the plays (see my previous post).

The two Humana Fest plays that didn't really toot my horn still had "sweetness" at their core.  I wish I could say that the Fest was a clean sweep of awesomeness, but I can't.

I was so hyped up to see THE EDGE OF OUR BODIES, written and directed by Adam Rapp.  I'm a big fan of the HBO series IN TREATMENT, and Rapp wrote for the "Sunil" storyline this past season-- the best storyline of the season, and perhaps my favorite storyline of the series.  I expected complex beauty from him, and EDGE fell short.  I wanted to be invested in Bernadette, but despite the fact that I share her New England prep school/Ivy-bound background and got all her in-crowd jibes about Loomis Chaffee and whether or not Mount Holyoke is as "overrun by lesbians" as Smith College... I still felt absolutely left in the dark.  I have no idea what happened in that play.  None. When the crowd applauded at the "end," I felt embarrassed.  I thought, "Oh no, the crowd thinks the play is over because she's walking out that door...." But it was, indeed, over.  I LOVE plays that give me something to discuss.  But this play left me utterly perplexed.

And I wish the Apprentice show had left me perplexed.  Last year's HEIST was an apprentice show that melded site-specific theater with audience participation... my experience with HEIST was, in short, one my top five nights in Louisville.  THE END, the apprentice show this year, had moments of utter brilliance (I will never forget playwright Marco Ramirez's segment called THE ONE THEY CALL THE BLOOP), but overall THE END felt like a high school skit about the apocalypse.

But, my goodness, this year's Humana Festival was a treasure.  The best Humana Festival I've seen since I moved here in 2006.  Even the less-successful works were imbued with sweetness and respect and love.