Archives: June 2010
bard in the park
Sure, the annual Heart of America Shakespeare Festival is, for many of us, an excuse to idle in the grass at twilight with a cooler and a lover. This year, though, when director Sidonie Garrett and her troupe of pros mount that splenetic history King Richard III, your wine and strawberries might take on traces of bile. This is sour…
The A-Team
Joe Carnahan’s big-screen adaptation of NBC’s 1983 three-seasons-running hit is convoluted, overstuffed and yet, somehow, deadly dull. Rather than a reinterpretation, it’s a soulless, sloppy, smirky rerun. Liam Neeson is George Peppard as Hannibal Smith, cigar-chomping frontman of the band of wrongly accused Army Rangers; Bradley Cooper is Dirk Benedict as Templeton “Faceman” Peck, bullets bouncing off his perpetual smug…
Cowboy down: Rob Krentz’s family talks about the life and death of the murdered Arizona rancher
Sue Krentz answered the phone about 6 p.m. It was March 27, a Saturday, and she was in Phoenix, tending to her aged parents as a sister attended a conference. Sue usually doesn’t stray from her family’s venerable cattle ranch in Cochise County for too long at a stretch. But she was planning on staying through the weekend, as another…
In Bloom
June 16, 1904, was James Joyce’s first date with his future wife, Nora Barnacle. Later, after he’d called her his “sweet naughty little fuckbird” in the most famous dirty letters ever written by a Nobel laureate, he set Ulysses, his account of one day in the life of Leopold Bloom, on June 16, 1904. Sweet, right? Anyway, June 16 is…
Briarcliff Farmers’ Market
Choose from a variety of organic and locally grown produce, flowers and herbs, salsas and jams, natural meats, local honey products and more. Thursdays, 3-7 p.m., 2010 Tags: 2977, Night & Day
Good Looks
Put on your Saturday best. Valerie Steele, named by the New York Daily News as one of “Fashion’s 50 Most Powerful,” is here — specifically, at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (4525 Oak, 816-751-1278) — to give a free lecture from 1 to 2 p.m. Naturally, the topic of Steele’s talk is “Chanel and Her Rivals: Fashion in the Age…
Fiesta Filipina
An annual showcase of Filipino culture, food, dance, and music, the Fiesta commemorates Philippine Independence. Sat., June 12, 12-8 p.m.; Sun., June 13, 12-6 p.m., 2010 Tags: Night & Day
The Reporter’s Wife
As managing editor of The New York Times, the remarkable journalist Gerald M. Boyd led the newspaper’s staff to an impressive collection of Pulitzer Prizes for stories that included coverage of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, race relations in the United States and, of course, the attacks of September 11, 2001. Despite this history of excellence, he became collateral…
Tony Party
The problem with the Tony Awards — at least here in the Midwest — is that live theater is a local art. It’s tough to care about Broadway plays that you haven’t seen or musicals that you can’t sing along to. But the award show itself is a good time, and just because Broadway theaters have the spotlight doesn’t mean…
France vs. Uruguay
Le Fou Frog hosts a viewing party for World Cup Soccer games featuring the French team. The restaurant opens at 12:30 p.m. and offers a buffet. For more places to watch the the World Cup in Kansas City, see The Pitch’s World Cup Soccer Bar Directory. Fri., June 11, 1 p.m., 2010 Tags: FIFA World Cup, Kansas City, Night &…
England vs. United States
Watch the first World Cup soccer match featuring the United States on the big screen at KC Live! Lounge in Power & Light District’s “living room” and enjoy a cool beverage from one of the entertainment district’s many bars as the United States takes on England. KC Live is broadcasting all 64 World Cup matches during its Summer of Soccer…
One Last Cup
At 1:30 p.m. today, fútbol aficionados can watch the final game at the last World Cup 2010 watch party. We’ve really enjoyed the monthlong succession of matches and the proliferation of Anglicized sporting terms conveyed with Midwestern drawls, particularly references to “the pitch”: “Gabriel Heinze of Argentina lies injured on the pitch!” “England falter on the pitch!” “Keisuke Honda was…
summer fun
To celebrate summer’s arrival, treat your cultural side to a free arts festival, otherwise known as the Downtown KCK June Fest, sponsored by Downtown Shareholders and held in downtown Kansas City, Kansas (Minnesota Avenue between Sixth and Eighth streets), from 4 to 9 p.m. At the same time is the Second Friday Art Walk, which links a selection of art…
Wee Little Roadsters
Originally envisioned as the automotive equivalent of the Swatch watches popularized in the 1980s (and developed by Nicolas Hayek, CEO of Swatch maker SMH), Smart cars, manufactured by Daimler AG, are now stacked up like cordwood on the curbs of Paris. You also see a few imports around Kansas City, a town known by people who have never been to…
Fresh Flowers
In hot weather, New York designer Matthew Robbins (Martha Stewart’s wedding-details go-to guy) likes astilbe, hydrangea, mint and orchids. Find all these at Studio Dan Meiners (2500 West Pennway, 816-842-7244) when it celebrates the grand opening of its retail store and event space. Beginning at 11 a.m., buy from an open-air flower and farmers market while listening to live music…
18th Street Style
The only way you’ll get down the block of West 18th Street between Wyandotte and Baltimore is on a runway — the street has transformed into a ready-to-wear thoroughfare for “A Decadent Summer,” the 10th annual West 18th Street Fashion Show. The free event is hosted by the merchants of West 18th Street, led by Peregrine Honig’s Birdies Panties. At…
grand selection
There are many farmers markets in the metro during the summer months, but none with as regal a name as the Grand Court Farmers Market, the year-round community market held on the grounds of the Grand Court Retirement Center at 107th Street and Wornall. It’s not as grand as it sounds, but the retirement center permits vendors to sell inside…
Jazz in June
The first Juneteenth happened back in 1865 on the 19th day of the month in Galveston, Texas, and commemorated the end of slavery. What was then known as African-American Emancipation Day has expanded over the years to encompass events that happen throughout June, all over the country, and which celebrate African-American history, achievement and progress. The Third Annual Kansas City…
madam maye
You want inspiration to embrace getting older? Look no further than local singing legend Marilyn Maye, who is getting the best reviews of her career — and awards and standing ovations — at age 82. Did she imagine this, back in the 1960s, when her career first took off? “Honey, I was too busy thinking about the next day,” says…
Random Songs
The thrill of attending a live performance is that it will never happen exactly the same way again. Taking away the set list for a musical revue ups the ante on originality. The Grab Bag Cabaret at Missie B’s (805 West 39th Street, 816-561-0625) puts the set in the hands of the audience — sort of. A singer can’t always…
DOLL PARTS
They steal the show, even if their performances are a little, um, wooden. They’re dummies, puppets, mannequins, voodoo dolls and marionettes, and let’s face it: They were made to be typecast as vessels for demonic possession. Hence their popularity in horror films dating as far back as 1936’s The Devil-Doll. Screening in six different cities in one night is Horror…
Joe Ely
Troubadour Joe Ely rambled through America and Europe in his youth, riding the rails and working a brief stint with the circus. When he returned home to Lubbock, Texas, in 1971, he hooked up with Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore to form the Flatlanders, one of the earliest examples of the country-folk-rock blend that would bloom into an iconic…
Josiah Wolf
You can almost hear Josiah Wolf’s shoes scuffling against the pavement as he delivers his downcast full-length debut, Jet Lag. The dissolution of an 11-year relationship casts a pall over every inch of the album. One hears echoes of his brother Yoni’s band, Why (in which Josiah plays drums), as well as the misanthropic shuffle of artists such as Lou…
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