Centerstage Chicago
Next time you nix the idea of spending $12 to check out the Art Institute, think outside the box (literally). Kevin Nance, who's been writing about art for 20 years, invites you to spend ten minutes (and no money) basking in the beauty of the public art that dots the city's streetscape. This North Carolina-native moved to Chicago in 2004 to become the arts and architecture critic for the Chicago Sun Times. He was immediately struck by the specific character of public art in Chicago and its tangled relationship to the architecture that surrounds it...
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Originally published January 24, 2007, Centerstage Chicago
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A glass of grapes is something I could always get behind, but in my early twenties, drinking beer always felt like trying to sip a glass of bread. That is, until I befriended a beer-lover who defied the guzzling, bloated-gut stereotypes and treated her beverage of choice with all the reverence of a fine vintage. She forced me to trade my can of PBR for a glass of Indian Pale Ale, and almost immediately I saw the amber-colored, slightly carbonated, alcoholic light....
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Originally published January 24, 2007, Centerstage Chicago
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"The Price" may be one of Arthur Miller's lesser-known plays, but Miller's obsession with money and its damning effects on the family unit remains a consistent theme. Premiering in 1968, decades after Miller's "Death of a Salesman" and "All My Sons," "The Price" is now receiving a spirited revival by Shattered Globe Theatre, under Todd Schmidt's deft direction...
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Originally published January 17, 2007, Centerstage Chicago
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Former Department of Streets and Sanitation worker Dennis Foley may know Chicago's roads like the back of his hand, but what really set his heart aflutter while riding that big blue truck was lunchtime. From the far north to the very South Side, there isn't a road he hasn't traveled. And when the crews gathered each morning to receive their daily assignments, they'd also swap tips on where to score the best cheap, fast and above all tasty lunch, even mapping their day's work around that noontime meal...
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Originally published January 8, 2006, Centerstage Chicago
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Puppetry and burlesque may not seem the likeliest bedfellows, but for Meredith Miller, taking to the stage in the devil's dance with a puppet on her shoulder is perfectly natural. A School of the Art Institute grad, Miller first began working with puppets during a year-long internship at Red Moon Theater. She soon realized just how narrowly most people define puppetry—and came to define it quite oppositely herself, most currently as an ensemble member and master builder with Blair Thomas Company. We spoke with Miller about her latest projects and how she responds to people who assume that she builds muppets all day...
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Originally published January 1, 2007, Centerstage Chicago
A few things are bound to happen as you sit in the audience of Moscow Cats Theatre, a Russian circus show composed of 30 cats, four humans and one dog: As you wait for the lights to dim, somewhere near you two women will compare the breed, age, sex and temperament of their multiple cats. Every time a cat appears on stage during the show—be it pushing a wagon on its hind legs or sulking as its being pushed—the kids around you will squeal in delight. You'll find yourself awing a few times yourself but at least once you'll wonder "what the hell am I doing here?"...
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Originally published December 14, 2006, Centerstage Chicago
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Chocoholics aren't known to be a picky bunch, but just because you're happy to pop Hershey kisses in a pinch doesn't mean you don't recognize quality. Luckily Chicago has its fair share of luscious chocolatiers selling indulgent, decadent truffles, from ganache-laden wonders that make us weak in the knees to exotic-touched truffles that are decidedly racy...
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Originally published December 11, 2006, Centerstage Chicago
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There is something devilishly funny about "The Santaland Diaries," the essay that launched humor writer David Sedaris' career after it was read on National Public Radio's Morning Edition a few days before Christmas in 1992. The essay, which follows Sedaris' real experience as an unemployed actor who works one humiliating season as a Macy's Christmas elf named Crumpet, lampoons the manic ether that hovers over the entire month of December...
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Originally published November 30, 2006, Centerstage Chicago
You've got less than 10 minutes to duck into a wine shop and grab a bottle for dinner. But what will pair best with spicy food and stick with the concept of tasty, blissfully cheap BYO dining? Luckily, there are people like Diana Hamann in the world, an all-around wine expert who's as jazzed about turning people on to wine as she is about sipping stuff that's inexpensive...
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Originally published November 27, 2006, Centerstage Chicago
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I don't see my aversion to cooking as much of a loss: Chicago is full-to-bursting with top-notch chefs and finger-licking cheap eats. But when a too-familiar relationship with local delivery drivers left me feeling a bit gross, I did my research and signed up for cooking classes at five of Chicago's best recreational cooking schools. Here's how I did...
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Originally published November 27, 2006, Centerstage Chicago
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