GE’s Nela Park Holiday Lights to Shine Again for 95th Year
GE Lighting’s Nela Park is once again brightening up the blocks along Noble Road with holiday lights this upcoming season. The official light switch ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 6. Two years ago, for the first time since 1958, visitors were allowed to roll through the middle of the park campus to take in…
Downtown Cleveland’s Bigass Christmas Tree Gets Lit Nov. 30 for Winterfest
Downtown Cleveland’s Winterfest celebration is set to twinkle once again this year. Scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 30 — yes, two days after Thanksgiving, as it should be — the public is invited to Public Square for a tree lighting ceremony and other family merriment. The event, which kicks off at 9 a.m., includes ice skating, horse-drawn carriage…
Cleveland’s Evergreen Cooperatives Launches Fund to Purchase Businesses, Turn Them Into Employee-Owned Operations
Evergreen Cooperatives this week announced the creation of a fund to purchase existing businesses in Northeast Ohio and convert them to employee-owned operations. The Fund for Employee Ownership, as it’s called, is part of Evergreen Business Services, which is just one segment of the nine-year-old Evergreen Cooperatives that currently operates three co-op divisions — Evergreen…
What You Need to Know About the 11th Annual Cleveland Comedy Festival, Which Kicks Off Today at Playhouse Square
The 11th annual Cleveland Comedy Festival returns today to Playhouse Square, and Cleveland Comedy Festival Co-director John Wellington says this year’s incarnation strives to be even more eclectic than past festivals. “There are a number of great shows for every type of comedy fan,” he says in a press release announcing the schedule. Free comedy…
New Ohio Holiday Lights Trail Kicks Off This Season, With Multiple Cleveland Area Stops
Ohio already has multiple craft beer trails and a buckeye candy trail, so it was really only a matter of time before the state got an official Holiday Lights Trail. Put together by TourismOhio, the brand new trail includes about 30 Christmas light stops with a handful of dazzling displays in Northeast Ohio. The goal,…
Cleveland’s Youth Orchestras Take the Stage and the Rest of the Classical Music to Catch This Week
Oberlin harpsichord professor Mark Edwards will tackle J.S. Bach’s fiendish Goldberg Variations on Thursday, November 15 at 4:30 pm in Fairchild Chapel. This famous set of 30 variations on the bass line of a lovely little sarabande is not for the weak-fingered. We heard Edwards play them two summers ago at the Oberlin Baroque Performance…
Ways to Celebrate the Life and Support the Family of Nikki Delamotte
Cleveland.com culture reporter Nikki Delamotte was found shot to death in a Wood County home Monday morning. Cleveland is grappling with, if not already mourning, the shocking and tragic news. Nikki was a beloved member of the local journalism and literary scenes and dedicated her work to bringing broader attention to unique local people and…
Path to Adulthood Paved with Obstacles for Ohio Foster Youth
COLUMBUS, Ohio – New research uncovers the instability faced by Ohio youth in foster care, and the resulting negative outcomes experienced during their transition to adulthood. Fostering Youth Transitions, a data brief released Tuesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, showed that moving in and out of foster care placements, unstable placement settings, and leaving…
Jazz Guitarist Pat Metheny to Bring His Side Eye Project to the Kent Stage in March
Jazz guitarist Pat Metheny launched his career way back in 1974 with a bang. His unique improvisational style that blends “the loose and flexible articulation customarily reserved for horn players with an advanced rhythmic and harmonic sensibility” quickly turned him into a sensation. Over the decades, Metheny has performed with everyone from Steve Reich to…
Organic Certifications Climb for Ohio Farms
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The end of the harvest signals the start of prep work for the next planting season. And an increasing number of farmers and producers in Ohio also are preparing for a transition to organic certification. Kim Bayer operates a mixed vegetable operation, and recently became certified as an organic producer. She says…
On Baker’s Big Game, a Browns Win, and Le’Veon Bell — The A to Z Podcast With Andre Knott and Zac Jackson
Andre and Zac discuss the Browns’ win over Atlanta, Le’Veon Bell’s absence, Baker Mayfield’s big game and their appreciation for those who attended the Rec2Connect fundraiser. Subscribe to A to Z on iTunes here or stream below.
RTA CEO Search Should be Public, Candidate Should be Committed to Equity, Advocates Say
In a letter to RTA’s board of trustees, Clevelanders for Public Transit’s Chris Stocking, Cleveland City Council’s Kerry McCormack and Cuyahoga County Council’s Dale Miller have asked for an open and transparent process in hiring the agency’s next CEO. The letter, which outlined desired qualifications for the candidate ultimately selected, is being delivered at Tuesday morning’s…
Weird Al to Return to the State Theatre in 2019
Always up for a gimmick, satirist Weird Al Yankovic has announced the dates for next year’s three-month Strings Attached North American tour that’ll find him performing for the first time ever with a full orchestra. The tour comes on the heels of his Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour that featured “an intimate, scaled-down show” that…
In Memory of Nikki Delamotte
Like all of you who knew or had contact with Nikki, we’re in shock at the news, as reported here by Cleveland.com, of her tragic death. We’re devastated. We’re angry. To say that Nikki was special is obvious to anybody who met her or read her. What might be less obvious is the unrelenting way…
Snow is Probably Coming For Us Tonight, Because It’s Cleveland
Last weekend, Cleveland and its surrounding areas were bombarded with a light sprinkling of snow. Starting late this evening and flowing into tomorrow, however, the National Weather Service of Cleveland is predicting the first major snowfall of the year. We’re talking up to a couple inches in some areas, combined with temperatures in the 20s…
Is Sherrod Brown’s Ohio Senate Win a Playbook for Democrats? He Seems to Think So
[image-1] Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown has been a surprisingly durable presence in Ohio’s congressional delegation even as the state seems to trend further to the right. Despite vocal support for unabashedly progressive policies from healthcare to immigration to LGBTQ issues, voters in Ohio on Nov. 6 sent Brown back to the Senate for a…
NEEDTOBREATHE to Bring Its Acoustic Tour to the Canton Palace Theatre
Singer-guitarist Bear Rinehart and singer-guitarist Bo Rinehart were initially a coffeehouse folk act, but they expanded to a four-piece after adding singer-bassist Seth Bolt and singer-keyboardist Josh Lovelace to the fold about 15 years ago. They’ve steadily toured and recorded as NEEDTOBREATHE ever since. Earlier today, the band announced the dates of an acoustic tour;…
First Look: Barroco Arepa Bar, Opening This Week at Crocker Park
What started in 2011 as a modest Lakewood cafe (12906 Madison Ave., 216-221-8127) serving almost exclusively Colombian arepas has grown to become one of Northeast Ohio’s most adored and unique regional restaurant groups. In 2017, the eatery run by the Vergara family expanded to the east side, with an attractive new location on Larchmere (12718…
Brothers Osborne to Play the Agora in January
John and TJ Osborne grew up writing and playing songs for friends and family. After moving from Maryland to Nashville, they launched Brothers Osborne, a self-described “twang-and-crunch duo” that blends country and rock. The band’s been a huge success and recently won back-to-back American County Music Vocal Duo of the Year awards. Earlier this year, they released their sophomore…
Prosperity Social Club to Host Its Annual Prohibition Repeal Party on December 2
A “noble experiment” that banned the consumption and sale of alcohol, Prohibition thankfully came to an end with the ratification of 21st Amendment on Dec. 5, 1933. To mark the occasion, Prosperity Social Club holds an annual Prohibition Repeal Supper Club party. This year’s event will take place from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Sunday,…
Poetry for People Who Hate Poetry, No. 3
This is the third in a monthly series by Dave Lucas, the Poet Laureate of the State of Ohio. You can read the September Installment, (No. 1), here; and the October Installment, (No. 2), here. *** “I never got poetry,” someone says to me again. And I sigh. Because I never got it either—at least, not until…
Cinemark Theatres to Offer Veterans Free Tickets to ‘First Man’
First Man, the latest film from Oscar-winning director Damien Chazelle (La La Land), recounts the story of the first manned mission to the moon. It focuses on Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling) and the decade leading to the historic Apollo 11 flight that he manned. In honor of Veterans Day, Universal Pictures and Cinemark Holdings have…
Grog Shop to Host a Cystic Fibrosis Benefit Concert in December
Over the past few weeks, Vince Silvestro, a local Cleveland musician, has worked to organize a benefit concert for Serena Silvestro, his first cousin who recently died of Cystic Fibrosis. “During her short life, she uplifted countless souls with her tenacity, intelligence, service, and love, and continues to enliven and empower countless more today,” says…
Laura Jane Grace & the Devouring Mothers to Play the Grog Shop in April
Bought to Rot, the debut album from Laura Jane Grace & the Devouring Mothers, has garnered praise from NPR, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, Billboard, Stereogum, Brooklyn Vegan and many more outlets. The “unapologetically confessional” songs feature lyrics about Grace, a musician, author, and activist best known as the founder, lead singer, songwriter and…
8 Concerts to Catch in Cleveland This Weekend
FRIDAY, NOV. 9 Blue October Led by volatile singer-guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, the alt-rock act Blue October has experienced extreme ups and downs since forming just over 20 years ago. Furstenfeld chronicles that rollercoaster ride in Crazy Making — The Words and Lyrics of Justin Furstenfeld, a collection of annotated lyrics for the songs in the…
Cleveland Native Dave Hill Reboots His Weekly Podcast
A Cleveland native who’s comedian, writer and righteous rocker, Dave Hill was ahead of the curve when he launched Dave Hill’s Podcasting Incident in 2010. The show featured interviews with guests such as Chris Elliott, Tig Notaro, Daniel Handler, Fenriz and Dick Cavett, whom Hill regularly refers to as his “best friend.” In 2014, Hill…
Why It’s Just Fine Backstreet Boys Aren’t Coming to Ohio for New World Tour
The Backstreet Boys aren’t coming to Cleveland next year. Today, the former heartthrob act announced dates for a brand new world tour, one that wouldn’t be making stops anywhere in Ohio. But honestly, that’s okay. Ohio is 98 Degrees country (the Lachey brothers hail from Cincinnati), New Kids on the Block and Boyz II Men…
Ingenious Petition Now Circulating to Cover Public Square Jersey Barriers With Berlin-Wall-Style Graffiti
A petition appeared this morning on Change.org which invites Clevelanders to take a page out of West Berlin’s playbook and cover the concrete jersey barriers on Public Square with graffiti. “We’re a city that prides itself on claiming it can solve every problem with a mural,” the petition notes, “so why not this one?” The…
Brasa Grill Closes its Doors After 15 Years
Through a Facebook post, Brasa Grill, Cleveland’s first but no longer only, Brazilian steakhouse has announced that it has closed. The Warehouse District staple was known for offering a bountiful salad bar and a continuous stream of grilled and roasted meats, served tableside by spit-and-saber wielding servers. Unused gift cards can be used at sister establishment…
Train and Goo Goo Dolls Coming to Blossom in August
Last summer, the pop rock group Train teamed up with Rock Hall inductees Hall & Oates for a tour that brought the two bands to the Q. Now, Train has just announced the dates of a summer tour that pairs it with the alternative rock act Goo Goo Dolls. The tour will feature special guest…
Recommendations From Franklin Blvd. Traffic Calming Experiment Will Be Presented Next Week
NOACA will present its final recommendations for traffic calming on Franklin Blvd. at a public meeting next Tuesday, Nov. 13, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Bethany Presbyterian Church (6415 West Clinton Ave.) This follows the traffic calming experiment conducted earlier this summer in late July and early August that inspired oh so many…
Two Violent Assaults at Last Week’s Browns Game, Including One That Left a Man in the ICU
Can Browns fans stop acting like drunken, violent jackwagons at home games already? Case in point, two tales from last week. A 28-year-old Toledo man was left with severe bleeding on his brain and in critical condition at MetroHealth after someone sucker punched him in the head outside of FirstEnergy Stadium following Sunday’s game. In…
Area Garbage Basketball Team Debuts Garbage Jersey Design
Your 1-10, cellar-dwelling Cleveland Cavaliers unveiled their 2018 City Edition uniforms today and they are nothing if not a fitting sartorial choice for a 1-10, cellar-dwelling basketball team. (You can read more about the “inspiration” and meaning behind all the details of the aforementioned garbage duds at the link above.) Some assemblage of players, at…
Black Violin Returning to Playhouse Square in 2019
Classically trained Will B (viola) and Kev Marcus (violin), the two musicians who make up the classical/pop/hip-hop group Black Violin, have just announced dates for a 2019 tour. They’ll perform at 7 p.m. on April 14 at the State Theatre. Their mission, as described in a press release announcing the show, is to “fuse classical,…
Some of the Country’s Best Fingerstyle Guitar Players to Play Annual Woodchoppers Ball
An event that serves as a benefit for the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless, the 18th Annual Woodchoppers Ball will take place at the Kent Stage on Saturday, Dec. 8. The concert will feature nine of the best fingerstyle guitar players in the country, including Muriel Anderson [pictured], Suzi Brown, Michael Kelsey, Christie Lenée,…
Downtown Akron Turning Into Stars Hollow for ‘Gilmore Girls’ Day
Where Lock 3 park in downtown Akron leads, we will follow. Or at least fans of the beloved TV show Gilmore Girls are sure to as the open air space is turning into Stars Hollow come Sunday, Nov. 18. Touted as Gilmore Girls Day, the park is set to feel just like the fictional Connecticut…
Poll Reveals Cost a Barrier to Medical Care for Some Ohioans
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Medical professionals say getting the right care at the right time is a crucial element of wellness, however new data shows that some Ohioans are delaying medical care. The 2018 Ohio Health Issues Poll examined areas related to access to health care, and found 8-in-10 Ohio adults reported they had a health…
The Future of a Blue City in a Red State
Ohio’s election results last night were devastating for the democratic agenda to protect our region’s vulnerable communities and reduce inequities. It was not a bad night nationally—our peers in Wisconsin and Michigan elected Democratic governors. Even deep-red Kansas elected a Democratic governor. And perennially purple Florida passed a ballot measure by more than 60 percent…
Daniel Gaul, of Serial Fame, Defeats Black Female Challenger Wanda Jones in County’s Closest Judicial Race
Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge Daniel Gaul, whose courtroom rhetoric and sentencing tactics the Serial podcast put under a microscope, defeated his Republican challenger Wanda C. Jones Tuesday night in the county’s closest judicial race. Gaul won with nearly 55 percent of the vote (197,241); Jones managed 45 percent (162,331). The 10-point gap…
A Big Week for Opera in Cleveland, and the Rest of the Classical Music You Shouldn’t Miss
It’s a big week for conservatory opera productions, with the Cleveland Institute of Music and Oberlin Conservatory both opening shows on Wednesday, November 7. Dean Southern will direct a double bill of Stravinsky’s Le Rossignol and Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortilèges in Kulas Hall at CIM. Rossignol is based on a tale by Hans Christian…
Cuyahoga County’s Issue 10 Passes in Landslide, Bringing LGBTQ+ Protections for County Employees
In a landslide victory last night, Cuyahoga County voters passed Issue 10, an anti-discrimination charter amendment establishing protections for LGBTQ+ county employees. The amendment arrives shortly after Cuyahoga County Council passed an ordinance establishing LGBTQ+ protections countywide. That ordinance was hotly protested — the infamous “parade of ignorant idiots” — but ultimately prevailed. Tuesday’s decisive charter amendment…
Former Cleveland Councilman Brian Cummins Has Accepted Peace Corps Job in Tbilisi, Georgia
Former Cleveland City Councilman Brian Cummins, who narrowly surrendered his Ward 14 seat to Jasmin Santana in 2017, has accepted a job with the Peace Corps and is decamping to Tbilisi, Georgia, for a 60-month post. Cummins is hosting a farewell gathering at Market Garden Brewery next week for friends and colleagues. He told Scene by…
Port Lucian to Celebrate the Release of Its New Single at Saturday’s Show at the Euclid Tavern
Featuring singer-guitarist Portia Maidment, a transplant from Philadelphia, the local band Port Lucian will celebrate the release of its dreamy new single, “Lucid Dreaming II,” with a show that takes place on Saturday at the Euclid Tavern. The single comes on the heels of the band’s debut, last year’s Sun. “While Sun was more pop-driven…
Flight Traffic Continues to Fall at Burke Airport, Down 13% Since Last Year
Amid a bunch of headlines at Hopkins — the 5,000-gallon fuel spill this week, two city officials bypassing security to retrieve a laptop, and the rollback of trans-Atlantic flight services from WOW and Icelandair — one other bit of airport news has stayed beneath the radar. Burke Lakefront Airport, which sits on 450 acres of…
Astronautalis and P.O.S., Who Bring Their Group Four Fists to the Beachland Next Week, Team Up For a Fiery Debut
In the opening salvo of Four Fists’ long-awaited studio album, Astronautalis and P.O.S., stalwarts of the more literary corners of indie hip-hop, join their distinctive voices and call out for something to happen in this dazed world of ours: “I want a riot, white riot riot riot of my own / I want a riot,…
Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink to Open Next Spring at Van Aken District
Since it was announced that James Beard Award-winning chef Michael Schwartz would be joining the roster of food and drink retailers at the Van Aken District in Shaker, it was understood that the Miami-based chef was planning to open a Michael’s Genuine Pizza. But after getting to know the area better, Schwartz elected to go…
Get Out: Everything You Should Be Doing in Cleveland This Week (Nov. 7-13)
WED 11/07 Cavaliers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Picked as one of the teams in the Western Conference that could potentially give the defending champion Golden State Warriors a run for their money, the Oklahoma City Thunder got off to a rough start this season. Part of the problem was that star guard Russell Westbrook was…
‘Les Miserables,’ the Musical Adaptation of Victor Hugo’s Novel About Perverted Justice, is Back at Playhouse Square
If you thought “crimes of necessity,” such as stealing bread to feed your starving family, were only punished centuries ago, you clearly need to think again. These days, the new America we live in relishes the opportunity to punish families from other countries that are escaping torture and death by tearing those desperate folks apart…
‘What They Had’ Provides an Honest, Humorous and Heartbreaking Look at Alzheimer’s
It’s difficult to encapsulate the sincere heartbreak of What They Had, but undeniably, this is an absolutely stunning debut from writer-director Elizabeth Chomko. The film opens on Friday at the Cedar Lee Theatre. Blythe Danner plays Ruth, a mother entering the beginning phase of Stage 6 of Alzheimer’s. After Ruth walks across Chicago in her…
Lobster and Pho’s Diverse Offerings Fill Some Voids in Independence’s Dining Scene
Most contemporary menus have ditched hyper-specialization in favor of a broader, more democratic approach to serving food. These days, it’s nearly impossible not to stumble into a place that attempts to appease even the most incongruent of groups, be they infiltrated by adventurous epicures, fussy foodies, or every mouth in between. But even the most…
Band of the Week: The Amprays
MEET THE BAND: A.K. Strange (guitars, vocals, Hammond B3, piano, other keyboards, percussion), Carla Cherry (bass, vocals), Jon Toerner (drums, vocals) SAD BASTARDS: This Cincinnati-based band came together in the early 2000s in Cleveland at a Sad Bastards Night at the Beachland Tavern. “It was right after [the local alt-country band] Rosavelt had disintegrated,” says…
Savage Love: What Ain’t Broke
I’ve been spending a lot of time lately thinking about myself and my sexuality and my romantic self. I can log on and easily find someone to fuck. I’m a bear-built top guy. There are ladies in my life who choose to share their beds with me. I can find subs to tie up and…
The True Story of Two Women Using DNA to Solve America’s Most Puzzling Cold Cases
They called the dead man Joseph Newton Chandler, but that wasn’t his name. He lived alone in an efficiency apartment in a nondescript complex in Eastlake. He rarely ventured far from home and the closest thing he had to a friend was a former coworker at a chemical factory he once listed as an emergency…
