Month: October 2010

Categories
Arts & Entertainment News

Bloody Good Fun: ‘Evil Dead: The Musical’

Just in time for the Halloween season, Evil Dead: The Musical made its area premiere at the Falcon Theater this weekend. The show runs at the Newport theater through November 6, 2010.

The first indication that this isn’t your typical horror show are the seats covered in plastic. Evil Dead is billed at the world’s first musical with a splatter zone. A section of the theater is reserved for adventurous patrons who don’t mind leaving the theater with bloodstains (all the ‘blood’ washes out easily).

Instead of scary and creepy, Evil Dead: The Musical is a hilarious mash-up of comedy, horror, and in-your-face innuendo set to music. Based on Sam Raimi’s cult favorite Evil Dead film series, the musical blends story lines and characters from several of the movies. The action begins with five young people embarking on their spring break adventure to a cabin in the woods. Housewares employee Ash (Nate Moster) leads his girlfriend Linda (Hannah Balash), whiny kid sister Cheryl, randy best friend Scott, and Scott’s ditzy new girlfriend Shelly across the only bridge to the cabin.

The group discovers an old manuscript and recording left behind by the cabin’s owner. They listen to the strange recording, inadvertently unleashing an ancient curse. Cheryl (Rebecca Weisman) is the first to fall victim to the strange noises coming from the woods. She’s transformed into an annoying demon that pops up out of the cellar to torment everyone else in the cabin. Eventually everyone falls victim to misfortune – some accidental – as Ash tries to destroy the demon. Fans of the Evil Dead franchise will be excited to see the singing moose make an appearance.

As his friends die off, Ash is confronted by the cabin owner’s domineering daughter Annie (Michelle Grove) and her boyfriend Ed (Jeff Surber). Only Annie can decipher and counteract the curse. However, more hilarious misfortunes – and a riotous musical number – befall the remaining non-demons before order is restored. Bryan Franke shone as Jake, the hillbilly who gets caught in the crossfire guiding the couple to the cabin.

While all the songs were witty and playful, “All the Men in My Life Keep Getting Killed by Candarian Demons” will stick in your head for day. Sean Mize was great as the lustful and foul-mouthed Scott, while Rebecca Weisman created the perfectly grating demon in Cheryl. While not a perfect, polished performance, the cast was full of energy and passion that left the audience in stitches. Simply put, Evil Dead: The Musical is bloody hilarious fun.

Evil Dead: The Musical runs at the Falcon Theater now through November 6, 2010. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the box office at 513-479-6783 for $18 ($15 students, seniors).

Performance Dates:

  • October 22, 23, 28, 29, 30, 31
  • November 5, 6, 2010
  • 8:00pm start time for all performances
Categories
Business News

Park+Vine to celebrate new location, expanded business operations

Park+Vine, Cincinnati’s first green general store has moved from its namesake location to 1202 Main Street in historic Over-the-Rhine. After more than three years of operation at the corner of Central Parkway and Vine Street, owner and proprietor Dan Korman decided it was time for a change.

“We had really outgrown the [former] space, and wanted to expand in a more diverse way,” Korman explained after stating he had signed a ten-year lease on the space. “The extra room allows for an expanded grocery area including frozen food and a bulk food section; a drink bar with seating area; a designated classroom space; and an outdoor patio.”

The 2,760 square-foot location previously occupied by Kaldi’s coffeeshop and bookstore will also have expanded hours and employees. Korman has added six new employees to his five person staff, and has increased the store’s hours of operation by 37 percent over the course of the week.

Korman also says that sales per-hour at the new location are slightly higher than its previous location in the first three weeks even before the office opening of the store’s drink bar.

“Being open more hours allows for residents to utilize the space as more of an everyday shopping experience, be it grabbing an early morning coffee or stopping by in the evening to pick up dinner ingredients or a suddenly needed roll of recycled content toilet paper.”

Beyond the business opportunities, the new Main Street location also offers an opportunity to more successfully integrate with the Over-the-Rhine community.

“Park + Vine is simply tapping into renewed interest and investment along Main Street. We’re seeing a lot of cross-over from neighboring businesses and far more evening traffic from people who live along Main Street and in Prospect Hill,” Korman explained. “The Shift from Vine to Main appears to be relatively easy for most people. They are excited about the renewed energy of Main Street and how businesses, organizations and residents are committed to supporting one another, as well as other areas of the neighborhood.”

The new location has been open now for several weeks, but the store is celebrating with a Grand Reopening Party this Friday, October 29, from 6pm to 10pm, to coincide with many other neighborhood events kicking off the Halloween weekend. Korman says that the celebration includes food from local vegan-friendly spots, drinks from Market Wines, music by Josh Eagle and Liz Bowater, and guest baristas demonstrating Park+Vine’s Hario coffee drip machine.

Park+Vine artist, Angie Unger, will also unveil her paintings and chandeliers using re-purposed materials from Zero-Landfill Cincinnati Project. Nearby, Share Some Sugar will be hosting a Halloween Costume Swap, and MOTR will throw an after-party. Five percent of every purchase at the Grand Reopening Party will be donated to ArtWorks.

Categories
Business Development News

Connect with fellow urbanists at Soapbox’s panel discussion on urban pioneers

Urban neighborhoods often suffer before they ultimately make a triumphant comeback. Whether the neighborhood is Brooklyn or Over-the-Rhine, urban neighborhoods rely on critical populace that is willing to take a chance when others are not. These people are what we call urban pioneers.

This scenario is the topic of Soapbox’s next speaker series event to be held at the Niehoff Urban Studio in Corryville. Urban Pioneers – The Cult of Personality will gather four of Cincinnati’s most relevant urban pioneers who have helped to transform once downtrodden neighborhoods like Mt. Adams, Northside, and Over-the-Rhine.

Organizers say that guest panelists will include Neil Bortz, Matthew Wirtz, Maureen Wood, and Terry Chan who will discuss what it takes to succeed in bringing a vision to reality by revitalizing parts of a city one building at a time. The discussion will be moderated by the former director of UC’s School of Architecture & Interior Design Michaele Pride.

While organized by Soapbox Cincinnati, the speaker series is sponsored by the Niehoff Urban Studio and heavily attended by the those involved in the Urbanist movement in Cincinnati. Founder of the Cincinnati Urbanist movement and poltics teacher at UC’s School of Planning, Terry Grundy, further explained the intricacy of urban pioneers to UrbanCincy.

“Someone — though more generally a small group of people — has to take a chance on a fine old neighborhood with lots of potential that’s lost population and become poorer over many decades,” Grundy explained. “Call the people who do this urban pioneers if you will but, whatever you call them, they’re the people whom we look back on years after a neighborhood has been turned around and say, “They’re the ones who got it all started.”

Grundy says that these initial urban pioneers are often followed by a group of “semi-pioneers” who move in before the neighborhood has fully turned around, but only after the initial risk was taken away.

“This second wave of people who come into rebounding neighborhoods is almost always made up of the key demographic groups that are attracted to urban life and are remaking older American cities: young professionals, the group we call the Bohemian Cluster (gays and lesbians, artists, musicians, true bohemians), empty nesters, and New Americans (immigrants from other countries). Some resurgent neighborhoods have a strong showing of members of one of these groups while others have a mixture of two or more. We know, for instance, that young professionals often enjoy living in neighborhoods with a strong contingent of the Bohemian Cluster.”

Urban Pioneers – The Cult of Personality if free to attend, but organizers are requiring reservations be made online in advance. The event will take place on Wednesday, October 27 from 5pm to 7:30pm at the Niehoff Urban Studio (map).  Registration and happy hour will begin at 5pm.

Categories
Business Development News Politics Transportation

Free interactive workshop at Union Terminal to gather public input on transportation investments

Ohio officials kicked off the first of eight state-wide public workshops yesterday in Columbus. The interactive workshops are structured to get resident input on public policy surrounding transportation investment.

The second of eight meetings will be held in Cincinnati today at Losantiville Cafe inside the famous Union Terminal building. At today’s free event guests will be treated to presentations by Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls and John Deatrick who will discuss the economic development impact of The Banks development for which he is overseeing.

Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) organizers say that part of the focus will be on how to better create jobs through transportation investments. Officials say that the discussions are part of ODOT’s Go OHIO Transportation Futures Plan which is examining how the state invests in all modes of travel and shipping including highway, air, rail, transit, water, pedestrian and bicycle. From there officials hope to better align those various modes of transportation investments with job creation, economic development and overall quality of life.

“Transportation has always been a driver of jobs and economic development for Ohioans,” described ODOT director Jolene M. Molitoris.

The U.S. Department of Commerce reports that approximately eight percent of Ohio’s private sector jobs was linked to the manufacture of exported goods in 2008, with approximately $45.6 billion in total export value during the same time according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

ODOT officials believe that the state’s seventh highest ranking nationally for value of goods exported to international markets, the nation’s fourth largest interstate highway system, the fourth most tonnage of goods moved through its waterways, and the third most active freight rail mileage in the nation speak highly to the ability to leverage transportation investments into economic development.

“The timing for this effort couldn’t be better with a report out of Washington showing that infrastructure investments can and will raise economic growth and productivity,” said Molitoris.  “Low construction costs mean we can do more than ever before with our resources and at the same time create more good-paying Ohio jobs.”

The free event at Cincinnati Union Terminal (map) will take place from 6pm to 8pm with registration at 5:30pm. Reservations are not required, but those interested in attending are encouraged to RSVP by emailing go.ohio@dot.state.oh.us.

Categories
News Politics Transportation

Metro officials balance 2011 budget, spare riders fare increases and service cuts

Metro officials have announced that fares will not rise, and service will not be reduced in 2011.  The news comes as the transit agency faces declining ridership, and many feared that more fare increases or service cuts would be on the way.

In August, Metro restored service to a portion of Lower Price Hill that had previously fallen victim to an earlier round of service cuts.  Now, the transit agency says that they have been able to balance their upcoming $86.5 million budget thanks to newly announced funding from the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) that is programmed to help with capital costs.

“Currently, Metro’s 2011 budget is balanced by using capital funding to help pay for operating expenses,” said Thomas Hock, Interim CEO & General Manager of Metro.  “The new funding from ODOT will allow us to shift those capital dollars back to their intended use for critical capital projects, with no negative impact on service.”

The $4M funding allocation from ODOT came through the department’s 21st Century Transit Partnerships for Ohio’s Next Generation which distributed $50 million in 2011 to transit systems across the state.

Metro officials warn that even though the 2011 budget appears to be in order, that future fares and service structures will continue to face pressure.  Leadership says that while fares have stabilized, insufficient funds exist for capital projects like the replacement of buses beyond their 12-year useful life.

“We have examined every expense and tightened spending for the coming year to preserve service for our customers and keep fares at their current level,” Hock explained.

The proposed 2011 budget will go before Cincinnati’s City Council who would provide approximately 45 percent of Metro’s 2011 budget through the city’s earnings tax revenue.

The One for Fun:
Metro officials have also announced that Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg will sponsor the new Route 1 bus service.  The partnership will include naming rights to the route in addition to typical bus advertising including promotions for Hollywood Casino on the back of each of the four, 30-foot hybrid buses on the route.

“As a tax-funded organization, this type of partnership is important to help Metro better serve the community,” said Dave Etienne, Metro’s Marketing Director.  Meanwhile, leaders at Hollywood Casino see the partnership as one that will help benefit their bottom line.

“As part of the Cincinnati business community, Hollywood sees this partnership with Metro as an opportunity to connect residents and visitors to some of Cincinnati’s best attractions,” said Tony Rodio, Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg General Manager.  “We’re among the top attractions in the metropolitan region, so we realize the importance of just getting people out there, actively supporting the businesses that are there for them – this effort achieves that goal – and through a simple bus ride.”