[ is listening to opera ] [ a million stories ]
✚ WATER EVERYWHERE, EXCEPT IN THE POOL Opera fans, bundled in heavy jackets, scarves and knit caps, stepped gingerly on the slushy sidewalks as they headed indoors to the Fairmount Water Works — hoping to hop into the swimming pool and keep dry. The former John B. Kelly Pool, empty and abandoned, served as the performance space for last weekend’s Tributaries: A Modern Cantata. The one-off production was part of the Fairmount Water Works’ new “Culture and Conversation” program, which aims to call attention to the historic landmark and raise its profile in the Philly landscape. “It engages people with the space who wouldn’t come here otherwise,” said Victoria Prizzia, head of an installation
and design firm that has been involved with the Water Works Interpretive Center. The visit to the old pool house, along the banks of the Schuylkill and behind the Museum of Art, began with a wineand-cheese reception in the adjacent Mill House. The mixand-mingle doubled as an opportunity to educate visitors about water and water management, and outlined the Water Works’ own research and work. Kiosks lining the walls detailed the relationship between Philadelphia’s sewers and manmade streams, tidal estuaries and the organization’s history.
In 1815, the Fairmount Water Works opened as “the nation’s first major urban water-supply system,” but was decommis-
sioned in 1909. In 1911, the space reopened as the Philadelphia Aquarium. In 1962, it was reinvented as the John B. Kelly Pool, a practice pool for high school students.
After Hurricane Agnes severely damaged the building in June 1972, the Junior League of Philadelphia raised money to
editor’sletter By Lillian Swanson
revive it and keep it open as a historical landmark. “It’s clearly a space that needs to be for the public,” said Fairmount Water Works director Karen Young. With about 125 people attending and most paying $30 admission, the cantata was not a big money-maker.The purpose of the event was to explore what the Water Works could do with the pool-house space and reach out to the community.
“It raises more friends than funds,” Young said. The pool is separated into three empty pits, split by two walls that once were used to create lap lanes. Two of the pool’s
The audience sat in the empy pool.
pits were filled with white chairs for the audience.
The third pit, by arch-shaped windows overlooking the river,
was reserved for the orchestra. Greek columns split the pits into sections, which set the scene well for both the pool and a night at the opera. With temperatures in the 30s, concrete walls and no heat, the audience stayed wrapped up against the cold, but clapped warmly for the four-part cantata. Philly’s Will and Brooke Blair joined Craig Hendrix of the Agave Opera in putting the performance pieces together. The
songs all dealt with water and man’s interaction with it. Afterward, audience members went back to the Mill House and its displays. “Hold on!” a woman said to her husband. “I just wanted to get —Sam Seifman another look.”
photostream ➤ submit to photostream@citypaper.net
A WARM GLOW: Residents of the 1700 and 1800 blocks of Addison Street in Center City turn their street into a festive holiday lane. The scene was photographed at about 8 p.m. on Dec. 9. Photographer Rob Lybeck says he usually tries to capture this scene each year when snow is on the ground. “I chose to photograph this particular street because it shows a true commitment by all of the neighbors living on the block, with everyone joining together to help decorate the trees.” ROB LYBECK
WHAT TALKS AND WALKS ➤ WHEN AMERICAN HUSTLE opens on movie
screens this weekend, it’s sure to remind us how deep the legacy of political corruption runs in Philly and revive memories of the Abscam scandal that once rocked this city. Long before political power brokers Vince Fumo and John Perzel were carted off to jail, an FBI sting in the late 1970s and early 1980s netted a whole kettle of big fish. South Philly Congressman Ozzie Myers and five other congressmen, three Philly city councilmen, Camden’s mayor and a U.S. Senator were among those ensnared. The new film is loosely based on that sordid time, when the FBI’s phony Arab sheik, who had bundles of real cash, sought special government favors from politicians. It was not a hard sell. And those juicy conversations took place right under our noses — at the Barclay Hotel in Rittenhouse Square. At one of those meetings, Myers dropped the line that became a great gift to the American lexicon of crooked politics. “I’m going to tell you something real simple and short,” he famously said. “Money talks in this business and bullshit walks.” For accepting $50,000 stuffed in an envelope, Myers was convicted of bribery and conspiracy and expelled from Congress. In 1981, he was sentenced to three years in prison and fined $20,000. The next year, Murray Waas, a young freelance writer, wrote a compelling magazine piece called “The Rise and Fall of a Ward Hack.” If you’re looking for a solid piece of journalism that describes that time and place and the real Philly hustle, be sure to read this article, first published in the now-defunct Inquiry magazine. Waas recently offered City Paper the right to post his article online, knowing that the movie opening would spur renewed interest. You’ll find it on our website, citypaper.net. Waas, who grew up in Northeast Philly and Huntingdon Valley, once worked for muckraker Jack Anderson and went on to become one of the most important investigative journalists today. The local connection also extends to an actor in the movie: Jenkintown’s own Bradley Cooper portrays the overzealous FBI agent. Our critic, Sam Adams, reviews the film on page 22. Check it out. (lswanson@citypaper.net)
C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | D E C E M B E R 1 9 - D E C E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 3 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |
7