Party time, excellent
Untitled Document Don’t get caught stuck to a barstool in lieu of ringing in the new year. The last day of 2006 is a time for changes. Make this year the year you actually remember singing the chorus of “Auld Lang Syne.” First Night Springfield, a family-friendly, alcohol-free holiday celebration, boasts a wealth of entertainment…
End of the year roundup
Chloe Day, a St. Louis native now residing in LA, first performed in Springfield back in July, at the Underground City Tavern, to a, shall we say, less-than-capacity crowd. I watched those patrons who were fortunate enough to attend the show (or, more likely, who were just hanging out in the bar) become mesmerized by…
People’s Poetry
coloradopoem #2 a snowtopped mountain over our shoulder we hiked on pine needles pine cones under the ponderosas pinons juniper trees pushed through tiny gambel oaks with brown curled leaves thumb size high onto the alpine meadow of goat ranch no goats no ranch dried cow pies though perhaps a bull’s those are knobbly yucca…
Yummy dream pops
Based loosely on the careers of Diana Ross and the Supremes, Dreamgirls hits the ground running with a full-fledged musical assault. Talent night at the Detroit Theater brings out myriad local music acts, all trying to win the contest — and fame and fortune. Though the Dreamettes — wide-eyed optimist Deena (Beyoncé Knowles), premature diva…
Scratching the surface
For many central-Illinois natives, the subject of Robert Mazrim’s new book, The Sangamo Frontier: History and Archaeology in the Shadow of Lincoln, is a surprise — the concept of archaeological research in Springfield seems as remote as the idea of growing soybeans in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. But, as Mazrim notes, archaeology is everywhere…
In the year 2007
Daylight hardly visits this quick December day. The pin oak out back drops its last leaf; the world hereabouts is quiet after its Christmas rush. You can reach out and touch the end of 2006 — it’s time again for Yanks Avatar to make his New Year predictions. He speaks: January — Movie stars will…
Sly’s comeback
Do we really need another Rocky movie? Apparently Sylvester Stallone does, as a means of resuscitating his dying career. There are three methods of regaining public attention: One is to try a gimmick, such as switching to politics. Californians probably voted for Arnold Schwarzenegger just to stop him from making more movies. Stallone is following…
Fashionable holiday fizz
’Tis the season to be toasting, and, according to experts, it’s the perfect time to raise a glass with some sparkle. “The wine is alive,” says Charles Stanfield, sparkling-wine director at Sam’s, an upscale liquor store in Chicago. “You might as well have something more festive in your glass for the holidays than a regular…
Have a sparkling New Year
“Remember gentlemen, it’s not just France we are fighting for, it’s Champagne!” — Winston S. Churchill Most New Year’s celebrations have seemed a bit awkward to me. The silly hats, noisemakers, and excessive drinking just feel wrong, somehow. We had a party at my house every year when I was growing up. There was little…
Well worth the wait
Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers, and Bastards, Tom Waits’ three-disc, 54-track tour de force, is more than a cleverly titled collection of outtakes, rarities, and oddball covers. It’s more than a grab bag of crap that didn’t make it into the official canon, more than a curated tour through the swollen archives of a three-decade career. Whereas…
