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$ % # % - " % 2 s 6/ ,5 - % . O 2 4 Dedicated to Free Times founder Richard H. Siegel (1935-1993) and Scene founder Richard Kabat Publisher Chris Keating Editor Vince Grzegorek

CONTENTS

5PFRONT

Editorial Managing Editor Eric Sandy Music Editor Jeff Niesel Staff Writer Sam Allard Writer-at-large Kyle Swenson Web Editor Bliss Davis Dining Editor Douglas Trattner Contributing Dining Editor Rachel Hunt Stage Editor Christine Howey Visual Arts Editor Josh Usmani

Columbus goes nutso with the bill-passing, Metroparks CEO lands another raise, and more

&RAMED

PLAYS .IGHTTOWN ON 3ATURDAY

Advertising Senior Multimedia Account Executive John Crobar, Shayne Rose Multimedia Account Executive Kiara Hunter-Davis

Our favorite photos from the past week in Cleveland!

Creative Services Production Manager Steve Miluch Layout Editor/Graphic Designer Christine Hahn Staff Photographer Emanuel Wallace

&EATURE

Circulation Circulation Director Don Kriss

'ET /UT

Euclid Media Group Chief Executive Offi cer Andrew Zelman Chief Operating Offi cers Chris Keating, Michael Wagner Human Resources Director Lisa Beilstein Digital Operations Coordinator Jaime Monzon Chief Financial Offi cer William Mickey

Dozens of events spanning the next week in Cleveland

Fans rebrand and rename the Cleveland baseball team

Business Asst. To The Publisher Angela Lott Sales Assistant/Receptionist Megan Stimac Staff Accountant Kristy Dotson

www.euclidmediagroup.com

3TAGE

National Advertising Voice Media Group 1-800-278-9866, voicemediagroup.com

The lost boys return to Dobama for a very long Peter and the Starcatcher

Cleveland Scene 737 Bolivar Rd, #4100 Cleveland, OH 44115 www.clevescene.com Phone 216-241-7550 Retail & Classifi ed Fax 216-241-6275 Editoral Fax 216-802-7212 E-mail scene@clevescene.com

&ILM

Dan Bankhurst

Even all-star cast can’t dislodge steaming pile of holiday pap in Collateral Beauty

Cleveland Scene Magazine is published every week by Euclid Media Group.

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$INING

Neighborhood butcher shops are back in a big way, so we visit Ohio City Provisions

-USIC

Singer-songwriter Ryan Humbert takes a traditional approach for this year’s Holiday Extravaganza

3AVAGE ,OVE

...The story continues at clevescene.com Take

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UPFRONT

THIS WEEK

IN A WHIRLWIND LAME-DUCK session at the Ohio Statehouse, our legislators tossed a number of restrictive, conservative policies in the ol’ Vitamix and spit out some noteworthy bills that now await Gov. John Kasich’s signature. Where to begin?

SB 331, approved in its full, multi-pronged final version, would prohibit cities from regulating pet stores. That is, cities that would like to bar pet stores, like Chillicothebased Petland, from selling puppies sourced at “puppy mills” would no longer be able to do so. Puppy mill operators, scattered mostly around rural Holmes and Ashland counties, are quite cozy with state legislators and the Ohio Department of Agriculture.

In a classic sleight-of-hand twist, legislators added a number of unrelated measures to that bill.

Of the utmost importance to us in Cleveland is an amendment that blocks cities from establishing a new minimum wage. It just so happens that a Cleveland ballot initiative awaits voters in a special May 2017 election, a ballot initiative that seeks to increase the city’s minimum wage to $12 per hour followed by incremental increases to $15 per hour.

“It is shameful that lawmakers in Columbus would interfere with a local democratic process,” said Jocelyn Smallwood, spokesperson for Raise Up Cleveland. “Voters should have the opportunity to decide —for themselves — whether or not to approve a minimum wage increase.

For state lawmakers to deprive citizens of the right to vote so that they can make a statewide powergrab is wrong — plain and simple.”

Politicians in Ohio, and across the U.S., have been fairly divided on the idea of raising the minimum wage.

State Rep. Jim Buchy, a Greenville

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Photo by Alexander Smith

WHAT JUST HAPPENED IN COLUMBUS? The Ohio Statehouse has been busy, busy, busy lately.

Republican, argued measures like Cleveland’s ballot initiative would “help destroy the economy” of Ohio.

Locally, Cleveland City Council president Kevin Kelley said that the minimum wage increase, as posed to the voters, would be “devastating” to the city’s economy.

The Saltzman family, which owns Northeast Ohio’s own Dave’s Markets, testified before council earlier this year and said that the wage hike would cripple their business.

Kasich has not signalled his intent yet; Clevelanders are awaiting the fate of their wages.

All of that from a pet store bill!

(SB 331 would also outlaw bestiality in Ohio.)

On a totally different note, the state legislature also approved two

GPODAWUND CONFERENCE NFL announces Browns will play a game in London in 2017. Reportedly also considering relegation to NCAA if they haven’t won by then. | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

restrictive abortion ban bills. Both of them are sitting on Kasich’s desk, and most political observers suspect he’ll sign at least one of them.

The more outlandish bill, known as the “Heartbeat Bill” proposes a ban on abortion procedures after the six-week mark for a pregnancy, a point in the timeline when many mothers aren’t even aware that they’re pregnant. The six-week mark is when, often, a fetus’ heartbeat is first detectable.

Similar six-week bans have been passed in North Dakota and Arkansas, although ultimately federal courts ruled that such a law is unconstitutional.

The other abortion ban that lawmakers approved along party lines last week was a 20-week ban, which is seen as an encroachment on

ABSCESS SWAP UH doctors use cell phone light after power went out to finish procedure on patient to remove suspicious lesion. Users somehow still not clamoring for “suture filter” on Snapchat.

Roe v. Wade.

“With the passage of this legislation, Ohio has taken a momentous step on the path to overturning Roe,” Ohio Right to Life president Mike Gonidakis said in a public statement. “When enacted, this legislation will immediately begin saving hundreds of babies throughout Ohio, and be part of a national movement that will save thousands of lives.”

According to the Ohio Department of Health, there were 145 abortions in the state last year that took place after the 21-week mark.

WE’RE WATCHING YOU, BRIAN In August 2013, Metroparks CEO Brian Zimmerman invited a City

WHERE’S YOUR VIDEO, TED?

QUALITY OF LIFE

Ted Strickland says he’ll “never say never” to running for office again. As for physically running, Strickland says he’s more of a prancercise guy himself.

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UPFRONT Club audience â&#x20AC;&#x153;to look at how [the Metroparks] are spending money.â&#x20AC;?

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been delighted to oblige him ever since. In that spirit we once again report Zimmermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual raise.

His pay increase for 2017 will likely be 3.95 percent ($8,700), the maximum annual amount prescribed in his three-year contract. That raise will bring his total compensation to $228,700. The increase this year comes on the heels of an enormous 19-percent increase last year, a raise that required separate board authorization. Zimmerman still receives his generous beneďŹ ts package and the use of a vehicle.

As usual, the public sentiment on this issue appears to be split: Many resent their levy dollars padding the salary of a man who is already one of the most handsomely paid public ofďŹ cials in the state, one who makes far more than every United States governor. Others cite the success of the Metroparks under Zimmermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leadership and contend that theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d pay even more for a man of his talents, a man who just received the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Professional of the Yearâ&#x20AC;? award from the Ohio Parks and Recreation Association.

Cleveland.comâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s VP of content Chris Quinn addressed the issue on WCPNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Reportersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Roundtable last week, echoing Mark Naymikâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s piece on the matter and saying that, apart from the staggering numbers, Zimmerman and the Metroparks â&#x20AC;&#x153;abhor publicity.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;He could make the situation a lot better by talking about it in the open,â&#x20AC;? Quinn said (paraphrasing), â&#x20AC;&#x153;but he refuses to.â&#x20AC;?

Dan Shingler from Crainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s offered the opposing view. He said that in the world of business, Zimmermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s $220,000 salary wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t seem outrageous at all. And his salary is a pittance compared to the eyepopping paychecks of head football and basketball coaches at some state universities. But Shingler did say that the Metroparks have made the situation worse by dropping additional money on crisis communications consultants (on which Scene has reported extensively) to â&#x20AC;&#x153;blunt the impactâ&#x20AC;? of the news.

Zimmermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 3.95-percent raise this year is automatic. That is, it requires no board action and doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to be reported or discussed in their agenda at all. When Quinn suggested Friday that the discussion

of Zimmermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s raise had been â&#x20AC;&#x153;postponedâ&#x20AC;? by the board, due at least in part to Naymikâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reporting, that was incorrect, according to the Metroparks. A spokesperson conďŹ rmed Friday that thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no action to postpone.

The Board of Commissioners are presumed to have discussed Zimmermanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s compensation in a private executive session at their meeting last week, but if they talked about anything other than reducing the raise from 3.95 percent â&#x20AC;&#x201D; if they intend to authorize a larger raise, say, like last year â&#x20AC;&#x201D; that will eventually have to come out in public.

OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTING IN HUDSON NOW LINGERS IN BCI LIMBO The city of Hudson last week released dash cam video and audio, as well as a bevy of personnel ďŹ le records, that illuminate the Dec. 4 ofďŹ cer-involved shooting death of Saif Nasser Mubarak Al Ameri, 26, in a wooded area off the Ohio turnpike. Al Ameri was a citizen of the United Arab Emirates, studying law at Case Western Reserve University.

Around 2:45 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 4, Al Ameri was allegedly driving erratically before crashing his car on I-80 in Hudson, according to witness reports to police. At some point, Al Ameri ran into a wooded area just north of the turnpike, where police ofďŹ cer Ryan Doran caught up with him near Hudson Aurora Road.

The BCI conďŹ rmed Monday that Al Ameri was unarmed. Initial reports, via the Akron Beacon Journal, had a police spokesperson indicating that â&#x20AC;&#x153;a struggle ensued and the ofďŹ cer opened ďŹ re.â&#x20AC;? The city did not release the police report in conjunction with the video last week.

The 22-minute dash cam video shows Doran responding to reports of a man running through the woods north of I-80. (According to 911 audio, witnesses reported seeing Al Ameri â&#x20AC;&#x153;running wildlyâ&#x20AC;? away from the turnpike. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something wrong with this guy,â&#x20AC;? one man told dispatchers.)

Doran pulls onto a gravel driveway and immediately draws his gun, heading off to the right and into the wooded area.

At that point, Doran can be heard off-camera yelling, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Get down! Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m gonna shoot you! Get down on the fucking ground! Get down! Get down now!â&#x20AC;?

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unclear what happens, though Doranâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s voice becomes more and

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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more intense; he breathes heavily as the encounter goes on. Initial police statements to media used the word “scuffle” to describe the encounter.

(An official police narrative has not yet been released to the public.)

Doran then fires a series of gunshots, at least six, possibly seven.

“Shots fired,” Doran says two minutes after first setting off on foot. “Subject down.”

The Summit County Medical Examiner confirmed the cause of death as a gunshot wound to the head, noting for the record that the death was a homicide.

Doran has been placed on administrative leave. He was taken to the hospital on Sunday with nonlife-threatening injuries, according to the police department; it remains unclear what that means.

DIGIT WIDGET 7 Margin of defeat for John Carroll’s football team in the Division III semifinal playoff against the University of WisconsinOshkosh last weekend.

33 Number of layoffs announced at U.S. Steel’s Lorain mill — one-sixth of the remaining workforce — where thousands of jobs have already been lost over the years.

PUBLIC SQUARE INJURY UPDATE At roughly 7 a.m. on Dec. 7, an RTA bus struck a female pedestrian at the intersection of East Roadway and Rockwell Avenue (the northeast corner of

Public Square).

An RTA spokesperson reported that the #39F bus was traveling northbound on East Roadway, and made a left-hand turn on Rockwell, right in front of Key Tower, and that the injured pedestrian was transported to MetroHealth Medical Center.

RTA said the accident is under active investigation, and the 69-year-old woman remains in critical condition as of Monday. Cleveland 19 last week characterized her injuries as “head injuries.”

The collision comes during a heated ongoing debate about the bus routes through Public Square, which did not reopen on Aug. 1 as the city had originally planned.

Remember that Mayor Frank Jackson intervened and insisted that various stakeholders discuss how best to “unify” Public Square — after ponying up $50 million to design a Public Square bisected by RTA bus routes. Since construction began in the spring of 2015, buses have been turning around the square.

One argument for buses on Superior Avenue is the consequent reduction in dangerous left-hand turns on the perimeter. Due to re-routing around the square, RTA buses will take more than 1.1 million more turns per year, about half of which are left turns.

U.S. SUPREME COURT DENIES DEATH ROW CHALLENGE AS OHIO RETURNS TO STATE EXECUTIONS This week, the highest court in the land declined to hear on Ohio inmate Romell Broom’s state execution challenge. Broom has been arguing that the state’s 2009 execution attempt inhibits its ability to try again; he claims that a second attempt would constitute cruel and unusual punishment, a violation of constitutional rights.

In 2009, officials stuck Broom with needles 18 times, with no success. “I tried to assist them by helping to tie my own arm,” Broom stated in an affidavit days later.

He was the first inmate in the U.S. to ever survive a state execution attempt.

“To force a man to prepare for his death — not once but twice — and the second time with the full knowledge of the error of the first, is an elevation of punishment repugnant to our Constitution,” Broom’s attorneys argued.

Broom, a Cleveland man, was convicted of murdering a 14-year-old East Cleveland girl named Tryna Middleton in 1984.

Earlier this year, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the state may try to kill Broom again. His appeal has reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where a one-line rejection order keeps Broom’s execution on the

Photo courtesy of Kimberly Dawley

UPFRONT

The investigation into the shooting has been handed up to the state attorney general’s office and the Bureau of Criminal Investigations.

“It affords a separation — that there’s no confusion as to what everybody’s role is,” police chief Dave Robbins said of the decision to kick the investigation to the state. “By having an outside agency take over the investigation, hopefully it assuages those concerns [of police department impropriety] for a lot of our citizens.”

He added that, as a matter of preparation within his career and role, he had long considered how he and his department might respond to an officer-involved shooting.

Al Ameri’s body was brought back to Dubai a few days after the shooting; family members were expected to gather on Dec. 9 for prayers and a burial service in Bani Yas. “Everyone knows that my son was an example of decency, ethics and commitment, and never known for any bad driving as claimed by the Ohio Police report,” Nasser Al Ameri, Saif’s father, told Gulf News.

$20,000 Donation made to local fire and police department by family of slain 15-year-old Sunny Ravi Patel, who was shot and killed during a robbery at family’s Mr. Hero in Cleveland Heights. A GoFundMe campaign had raised funds for the family.

1,500 Approximate number of trauma patients admitted to University Hospitals Level-1 trauma center (through October), which opened Dec. 1, 2015.

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

“The Wayne lives and breathes. The water in and around it means life. It is a special place, a national forest, there for the enjoyment of everyone, even creatures. It should not be leased or sold to the highest bidder for virtually what amounts to its destruction,” Kimberly Dawley said during a Dec. 10 protest. She and her group, Save the Wayne, were joined by other organizers in opposition to the federal government auctioning public land to gas and oil drillers. “We are inspired by everyone we see around the country who are speaking out about these issues, particularly at Standing Rock, and are following in their footsteps.”

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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calendar. (Justices Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan indicated that they would have preferred to grant the appeal and to hear the case in full.)

The Broom case is noteworthy also because he is not alone in eyeing an impending 2017 execution.

Ronald Phillips will be the next Ohio inmate to be executed — in January, after a three-year hiatus on capital punishment in the state.

The return to executions has been a hotly debated and extremely secretive operation for the past few years.

In 2014, Ohio inmate Dennis McGuire was killed in a controversial state execution that involved the drug midazolam.

McGuire took more than 15 minutes to die, as he gasped audibly. That event tracks very closely to an Alabama execution last week. ABC News explains: “Death row inmate Ronald Bert Smith Jr. coughed, and his upper body heaved repeatedly, for the 13 minutes as he was being sedated, and his arms appeared to move slightly after two tests were administered to determine consciousness.

“Smith’s attorneys, who watched

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Photo by Eric Sandy

UPFRONT

the execution, said in a statement Friday that the movements show that he ‘was not anesthetized at any point during the agonizingly long procedure.’”

Phillips’ own attempts to stay and/or challenge the execution have gone unfulfilled as Ohio sets about using a similar drug cocktail to the one that Alabama used in last week’s controversial execution.

THE BRANDON KING ERA BEGINS IN EAST CLEVELAND Outgoing East Cleveland mayor Gary Norton was officially recalled in a special Dec. 6 election. Council president Thomas Wheeler was recalled as well, though the incredibly thin 18-vote margin is prompting a recount. By all measures, it’s expected that he’s on his way out the door. With all that in mind, say hello to East Cleveland’s new mayor: Brandon King.

It’s an unanticipated dominoeffect headline, as King has never positioned himself to lead the financially crippled city. During a Dec. 8 press conference, he literally shrugged off his new role. “I am a product of the city, born and raised right here in East Cleveland,” he told the press scrum at city hall.

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

Brandon King is expected to become East Cleveland’s next mayor.

“Currently I am the vice president of city council, and as we await the certification of the results of the recall I stand ready to continue to serve the people in any way that I can and continue to move this city forward.” After that short statement, he appeared at a loss for words and shrugged his shoulders back toward Norton. Any further vision for his impending administration remains wholly unclear.

King was elected to council in 2013.

For now, it’s really hard to say how

Norton’s recall will affect the city.

After insisting that East Cleveland would never merge with the city of Cleveland, he had taken up the mantle and championed the idea of the merger over the past year or so. Merger talks between the two cities have largely stalled. (All East Cleveland council members, including King, supported the formation of a commission to study the merger.)

Elsewhere, Norton sits on the RTA Board of Trustees. His term is up March 2018, and Cuyahoga County officials have confirmed that he’ll stay on for the time being. (The RTA board, as we’ve reported, is caught up in a needlessly protracted debate over Public Square and the fate of many, many public dollars right now.)

In fact, a county spokesperson told Scene that Norton’s status as mayor wasn’t even a factor in appointing him to the board. “His appointment is about his qualifications, not about his being an elected official,” we were told.

East Cleveland will see a mayoral race in 2017; councilman Nathaniel Martin has said that he has plans to run in that November election.

scene@clevescene.com t @clevelandscene

FRAMED!

our best shots from last week Photos by Emanuel Wallace

He sees you @ America’s Got Talent auditions

Luau @ America’s Got Talent auditions

Celebrate! @ Santas in Tremont Fun Run

Run, run, run @ Santas in Tremont Fun Run

Juggling for America @ America’s Got Talent auditions

So cold @ Santas in Tremont Fun Run

On the mic @ Cruel Winter Fest

Ready to race (and drink) @ Santas in Tremont Fun Run

Vox @ Cruel Winter Fest

Never miss a beat!

See more pics @ clevescene.com Here’s Jonny @ Rust Belt Rising Star chef awards

Share your best shots with SCENE – just tag or mention us! ™ @ clevescene t @ cleveland_scene ` #LEVELAND3CENE s CLEVESCENE | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

FEATURE

Renaming and redesigning the Cleve veland Indians with the help of Scene readers Scen Sc enne St Staf aff ff THE SUB BMISSIONS ARE IN: ONE hundred d and fourteen proposals in all envisiioning a new name and logo for the Cleveland Indians, plus a batch froom Ms. Kate Grzelak’s class at CMSD’s Campus International School.

The anxiiety and attention around the Indians’ Chief Wahoo logo, building for yearss but hitting a fever pitch thanks too the 2016 post-season post season run, has resu ulted in (among other things)

this, a contest to keep the coonversatioon humming, to harness the crreative talents of Clevelanders and n nonClevelanders alike in order to t — we hope —realistically explore a muchneeded rebrand. It is, after aall, high time for Wahoo to go, and w we hope th hat even Wahoo supporters can appreciaate the energy and care expend ded on thee thoughtful, innovative conceepts we’vee highlighted in the following g pages.

Our con ntestt dirrectives were sim mple: Re-brand mple: Re-b thee team. Coome up with a new namee and logo and show us the artwoork. We’d then post thee submisssions online, see what thee voting public had to say about theem (voting g will go live on Dec. 21 at clevesccene.com/baseball), and

even convene a panel of experts — journalists, sports folks and maybe an art professor or two (still being courted) — to determine winners.

A variety of prizes and a worthy

CLEVELAND INDUSTRIALS BY GARY BOSTWICK “I believe there is a way to develop a new brand that keeps some of the elements of the current Cleveland Indians brand yet pushes the whole team’s concept to new places. I believe there is a way to honor Clevelanders, our history, our fans and our love for what the Indians have build without demolishing the entire building.

“The Cleveland Indians are a reflection of the city: the hardest working guys you’ll ever meet. Although the players hail from around the world, they each embody Cleveland’s blue collar work ethic and the Rust Belt’s “never say die” persistence.

The new brand I’ve created embraces these traits. It pays homage to history but also is as timeless as baseball.”

CLEVELAND GENERALS BY JORDAN GRIMES “The main inspiration for this rebrand is General Moses Cleaveland. He founded the city of Cleveland in 1796 and held many titles, one of them being a captain in the military.

There is definitely a military theme to this rebrand and is reflected in the color palette. In addition, the color green is underused in MLB teams so it was a great fit.”

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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FEATURE THE SUBMISSIONS Perhaps unexpectedly: “Spiders” was the most popular submission. Nine people sent us proposals with variations on that name. Both “Guardians” and “Tribe” — the former to honor the Guardians of Traffic on the Lorain-Carnegie bridge, the latter to honor the Indians franchise (but without Wahoo) — were submitted by eight individual artists. Seven submissions proposed the Cleveland “Rocks,” about half with a musical theme and the other half with a geological theme; get it? We also received a number of rock variations: two “Rockstars,” two “Rockers,” and even, improbably, a “Rocksters.” Other musical concepts — “Jam,” “Sound” — made appearances as well.

Concepts from the world of flora and fauna were by and large less fully realized, but nevertheless welcome: “Bluebirds”; “Whitetails”; “Owlbears”; two inspired by the Ohio state reptile, the “Black Racer”; and an array of Great Lakes marine mascots including “Steelheads,” “Walleye” and even “Catfish.”

Military names and logos were in no short supply: Multiple submissions conceptualized artwork based on “Commanders,” “Commodores,” “Generals” and “Crusaders.”

Some of our favorite submissions took inspiration from the mechanical world and Cleveland’s manufacturing identity: “Engines,” “Industrials,” “Inventors,” “Bolts,” “Blue Collars.”

Taken as a whole, the submissions speak to a bounty of creative energy and moral force on the shores of Lake Erie. We’re pleased to highlight a few of the many submissions here. Online voting will begin next week at Clevescene.com/baseball.

Spread the Word.

16

conversation hung in the balance.

The submissions spoke for themselves. Hours after our announcement on Nov. 16, the emails began to trickle in. Occasionally, artists would re-submit days after an initial submission with modifications to their designs. Almost always, a personal narrative accompanied the artwork. Many spoke of their conflicted relationship with Chief Wahoo. Some said they only recognized its offensiveness recently.

Others said they’d been railing against its use for years. Still others had no personal problem with the logo but understood the value in change.

We’ve seen the local conflict dramatized for decades on opening day, when Native American activists and their allies rally outside Progressive Field (and earlier, outside Cleveland Municipal Stadium), calling for an end to Wahoo and the dehumanization of indigenous

peoples in logos and mascots. Wahoo proponents have become louder and more hostile in recent years, ardently defending Chief Wahoo as a cartoon, as a symbol designed to produce “unbridled joy” in the fan base.

Sadly, the only thing unbridled about Wahoo support that we’ve witnessed in the past three seasons of covering the issue in a concerted way has been vitriol. Many support Chief Wahoo quietly, or unthinkingly, or just don’t see what all the fuss is about. But those who have become the logo’s de facto spokespeople online are, almost without exception, crass and violent. They view even talking about the logo — to say nothing of phasing it out — as a capitulation to political correctness.

Many Cleveland fans were annoyed or alarmed by the national outrage over Chief Wahoo during the 2016 playoff run. Pro-Wahoo online commenters interpreted the

coverage as a metastasizing cancer, as a worsening symptom of the same disease — a liberal media obsessed with identity politics, “offended by everything.” When we announced the contest, gay slurs and nasty insults too indecent to reprint were hurled our way.

But it should not be forgotten that Chief Wahoo was nearly phased out before, in the early 1990s, as the team prepared for its move to Jacobs Field.

Local cartoonist Derf Backderf wrote in 2014 that in the face of opposition from Native American groups and local critics — among them Derf himself — owner Dick Jacobs doubled down. He chose not only to preserve Chief Wahoo, but to promote the hell out of it.

From Dick Jacobs to the Dolan family, the Chief Wahoo defenses have been more or less the same.

“I believe Chief Wahoo is a likable character that helps the fans identify

CLEVELAND GUARDIANS BY TIM SCHIFLE “I have been a loyal fan of Cleveland baseball for as long as I can remember. Like many, I was surprised to see protests over what seemed to be simply a joyful, endearing mascot. Since then however, it has become apparent that my opinion lacked perspective, and I offer a sincere apology to all whose pride in their heritage may have been mitigated by my passionate fandom. It is now clearly time for a change—one that fans all over our fine city can point to with pride. It is my intent to capture both the history and tenacity that make Cleveland and its residents so darn special, and in that spirit, I give you...The Cleveland Guardians.

The Guardians of Transportation on the Lorain-Carnegie Bridge have been a source of strength and civic pride since 1932--one year afer the completion of Municipal Stadium, baseball’s home on the North Coast for over 60 years. The bridge, fittngly, terminates at the world-famous “Corner of Carnegie & Ontario,” only a few hundred yards from home plate. This subtle change to the name would retain continuity among the current fan base, and provide ultimate respect to the heritage of both our fair city, and the proud Native Americans who live here.”

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

| clevescene.com m | December 14 - 20, 2016

17

FEATURE with the team and creates excitement,” Jacobs said in 1993. “When I look at the logo, I don’t think of American Indians at all, I think of the team.”

The Dolans, both Larry and his son Paul, met with students from Oberlin College back in 2001 to discuss the logo. At that time, Paul Dolan “firmly rejected” that Wahoo was racist. He acknowledged it might be offensive to some, but not racist.

“I think I understand racism when I see it,” he said.

And yet, in recent years, Chief Wahoo appeared to be slowly phasing out once again. The logo is invisible at

spring training camp in Arizona, for example, where the Native American community is much more prevalent. At the beginning of the 2016 season, Paul Dolan said that Chief Wahoo would be further de-emphasized, relegated to secondary logo status.

Then the 2016 playoffs arrived, and the Indians wore Chief Wahoo ball caps every single game, a preference noted by national media outlets. (Note: The starting pitcher chose the uniform combination for each game.) A lawsuit in Canada kicked up further publicity.

Ultimately, a judge in Ontario ruled in favor of the Indians, just hours before the first pitch of Game 3 in Toronto, deciding that the Indians could wear their official uniforms and caps.

In the middle of all that coverage,

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a radio interview that he and Larry Dolan had agreed to meet after the World Series to discuss the future of Chief Wahoo. That news was cheered by local Native American activists, who said they were remaining realistic but were excited because the commissioner “had clout.” As of this week, there has been “no substantial meeting” between the Indians ownership and Major League Baseball, said Curtis Danburg, the Indians’ senior director of communications. Danburg said the team couldn’t comment on our contest, and when we asked to be informed if Mr. Dolan and Mr. Manfred do eventually meet, Danburg said that the team didn’t plan to make that information public.

Part of the aim of Scene’s contest was and is to continue the conversation, to keep the light tracked on the issue. So often, after the MLB season has concluded, the controversy no longer seems relevant or gets buried by football or basketball news. It is still relevant, of course. It is still newsworthy. It is still worth talking about. And the submissions we received demonstrated, to an astonishing degree, that the conversation can be an exciting one.

When we talk about Chief Wahoo, we don’t have to be somber and defeatist.

Evident in these proposals is a love of Cleveland baseball — of the Cleveland Indians — and a willingness and desire to embrace whatever they might become.

CLEVELAND COMMANDERS BY RUDY SLAMA “With a rich history stemming from our great lake, Lake Erie, a naval commander really jumped out as a way to highlight our past while capturing some of the great qualities associated with the personnel who navigated the treacherous waves. For example: strength, resilience, confidence, & prestige. To continue in the spirit of retaining and celebrating our city’s past I wanted to utilize a similar color pallet to the prior team as a reverent homage and as a way of bolstering the tradition that is Cleveland athletics.

“This team is built around the ‘Cleveland against the World’ mentality and the Commanders’ are our next wave of reinforcements to protect our shores and DEFEND THE LAND.”

TOP FIVE TEAM NAMES SUBMITTED

18

TOP FIVE WEIRDEST NAMES SUBMITTED

TOP FIVE ANIMAL NAMES SUBMITTED

Spiders (9)

Cupidz

Owlbears

Guardians (8)

Handlebars

Osprey

Tribe (8)

Aliens

Rocks (7)

Jeffs

Racers (based on Ohio’s state reptile, the Black Racer)

Generals (4)

Drones (in honor of His Bloodiness Trevor Bauer, no doubt)

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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FEATURE

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FEATURE CLEVELAND DRAGONS

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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SCENE Magazine presents

FLAVOR FLAVOR celebrates the local culinary scene by bringing together leading Cleveland restaurants. Select beer, wine and cocktails add to the VIP-style soiree that is, FLAVOR. Food and drink lovers enjoy the top, most highly regarded restaurants and bars in Cleveland. Back by popular demand, the “Iron Fork” returns to FLAVOR this year. Top chefs from Cleveland will create a unique, mouth-watering dish. Each chef will have 30 minutes to stir up a winning quick-fire dish to impress our judges! Tickets are $40 in advance, $55 at the door and include unlimited food and drink tastings and live entertainment.

Thursday, December 15, 2016 Lago Custom Events at Aloft Cleveland Downtown sceneflavor.com

SCENE Magazine presents

UNITED WE BRUNCH There’s no better way to chase away a hangover than brunch with friends. And SCENE is once again bringing together the best restaurants in town with one mission: unite to cure Cleveland’s hangover. Brunch tastings, Bloody Mary’s, mimosas, beer, wine and champagne - all in the historic, newly-renovated Galleria & Tower. It’s the ultimate cure for a Friday night party — and a great start to another night on the town! General Admission tickets are $40 in advance and include 5 drink tickets, unlimited brunch tastings and commemorative glass.

VIP tickets are $60 in advance and include early entry, 8 drink tickets, unlimited brunch tastings, commemorative glass, VIP seating and access for full bar. Limited availability.

Saturday, January 21, 2017 Galleria & Tower at Erieview sceneflavor.com

F I N D O U T A B O U T T H E S E E V E N T S A N D M O R E AT C L E V E S C E N E T I C K E T S . C O M

28

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

everything you should do this week

GET OUT WED

12/14

ART

A City on Fire Tonight at 7 p.m., MOCA Cleveland hosts A City on Fire: Artist Dialogue with Anders Ruhwald and Dan Pitera. Pitera is a Detroit-based architect and sociopolitical activist.

Ruhwald is a Detroit-based, Danish artist and head of the ceramics department at Cranbrook Academy of Art. Ruhwald’s current MOCA exhibition, Unit 1: 3583 Dubois, recreates several life-size rooms and corridors based on a permanent installation Ruhwald is creating in an apartment he purchased inside the dilapidated building from which the exhibition draws its name. Though the 7,000-squarefoot brick apartment building still stands, it has been reassigned a new address: 2170 Mack Ave. Using materials from the building as well as his signature ceramic works, Ruhwald creates abstracted spaces to “retell (and thus reclaim) the past, animate the present and suggest a shifted future.” The exhibition is is organized by MOCA Cleveland’s deputy director Megan Lykins Reich, in the Toby Devan Lewis Gallery.

Tonight, Ruhwald and Pitera will use the exhibition as a starting point to explore the evolution of Rustbelt cities like Cleveland and Detroit, as well as Ruhwald’s metaphor for transformation of both objects and space. Current exhibitions remain on view through Dec. 31. Tonight’s program is free with museum admission. (Josh Usmani) 11400 Euclid Ave, 216-421-8671, mocacleveland.org.

Scene’s FLAVOR event returns to Lago Custom Events at Aloft Hotel. See: Thursday.

FILM

Happy Hour Classic Film Series The Capitol Theatre’s popular Happy Hour Classics Series returns tonight with a screening of White Christmas, the 1954 musical that stars Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera Ellen.

Admission to the film includes a complimentary mini-cocktail (or soft drink), appetizers and music at the Happy Hour cocktail party. The reception starts at 6 p.m., and the movie begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10. (Jeff Niesel) 1390 West 65th St., 216-651-7295, clevelandcinemas.com.

FILM

The Group Candice Bergen, Joan Hackett and Elizabeth Hartman star in Sidney Lumet’s 1966 film The Group.

Jessica Walter, widely known for her role as Lucille Bluth in Arrested Development, also makes her secondever appearance in a film. Originally based on a novel of the same title by Mary McCarthy, the movie follows eight female students and their lives post-graduation from a liberal arts school. It screens at 6:15 tonight and Friday at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Tickets are $9, or $7 for CMA members. (Brett Zelman) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

BEER

Hoppin’ Frog Hoppy Hour Much like Fat Head’s tasting room in Middleburg Heights, the Hoppin’ Frog Tasting Room in Akron is in a nondescript strip of storage facilities and warehouses. But step inside and you’ll find a cozy tasting room where you can find a huge array of the brewery’s wonderful libations. The place features “hoppy hour” every weekday from 3 to 7 p.m. Tonight, the brewers visit the tasting room from 5 to 7 p.m. While they don’t fill growlers, you can drink bottles on site or take ’em to go. The place also offers a “Hoppin’ Frog Rare & Vintage” list as well as a guest

bottle list. And you can order from a limited food menu too. (Niesel) 1680-F Waterloo Rd., Akron, 234-525-3764, hoppinfrog.com/tasting-room.

SPORTS

Monsters vs. Iowa Wild The Cavs NBA title undoubtedly overshadowed the Cleveland Monsters’ Calder Cup win, but the AHL team won the hearts of local hockey fans with its lengthy playoff run that culminated in a championship. Tonight and Friday at 7 at the Q, the team faces off against the Iowa Wild. For tonight’s game, college students with an ID can get $6 tickets and buy a “college meal” for $6. On Friday night, the first 10,000 fans will receive a Calder Cup champions scarf. The Monsters, Cavs and the Q will also accept new, unwrapped toys for a toy drive. The Monsters will be back at the Q at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 20, to play the Charlotte Checkers. Tickets start at $10. (Niesel).

1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, theqarena.com.

THEATER

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer — The Musical The TV classic Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer took the story of

Santa and his reindeer and added a slew of new characters to the mix. Hermey the Elf, Bumble the Abominable Snow Monster, Clarice and Yukon Cornelius all helped bring that story to life and turn it into a family friendly favorite.

Tonight at 7:30 at the Akron Civic Theatre, you can relive those memories with Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer — The Musical.

Tickets are $25 to $45. (Niesel) 182 South Main St., Akron, 330-253-2488, akroncivic.com.

THU

12/15

FILM

As I Open My Eyes One critic called last year’s As I Open My Eyes the “best fictional film yet about the Arab Spring.” You can see for yourself when it screens at 6:45 tonight and at 9:35 tomorrow night at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque. The movie centers on a young woman who decides to become the lead singer in a radical rock group. Inspired by Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution, she defies her family and drops out of med school in the process. Tickets are $10, $7 for members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu. | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

29

GET OUT MUSIC

Cleveland Orchestra Christmas Concert Celebrate the holiday season with the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus as the groups perform music for the Christmas season. There will be sing-alongs, guest choruses and a surprise visit from a festive fellow dressed in red velvet. Performances take place at 7:30 tonight and tomorrow night at Severance Hall.

Concerts repeat at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets start at $45. (Niesel) 11001 Euclid Ave., 216-231-1111, clevelandorchestra.com.

installation fills the museum’s Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation Gallery and extends into the Beatrice Knapp McDowell Grand Lobby, inviting visitor engagement. The talk is free. (Usmani) 1 South High St., Akron, 330-376-9185, akronartmuseum.org.

FILM

Knight of Cups Knight of Cups, director Terrence Malick’s latest feature, stars

ART

A Gallery Talk Jimmy Kuehnle’s inflatable sculptures have been dazzling spectators throughout the U.S. and around the world for years.

Kuehnle, who teaches at the Cleveland Institute of Art, has had solo shows at museums, galleries and universities in the U.S. and interntionally. Locally, he has had recent installations at MOCA Cleveland and the Akron Art Museum. He is also a recipient of Cuyahoga Arts and Culture’s Creative Workforce Fellowship. At 6:30 tonight, Kuehnle will host a gallery talk at the Akron Art Museum. His current installation, Wiggle, Giggle, Jiggle, remains on view through Feb. 19, 2017.

Created with coated polyester and coated nylon fabric, the site-specific

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COMEDY

Rocky LaPorte In 1988, Rocky LaPorte quit his day job as a truck driver to become a professional comedian. Turned out to be a good move. LaPorte

T f i g e H t e v I G oF RoCk

SCENE EVENT

FLAVOR FLAVOR celebrates the local culinary scene by bringing together leading Cleveland restaurants. Select beer, wine and cocktails add to the VIP-style soiree that is FLAVOR. Food and drink lovers can sample food from some of the most highly regarded restaurants and bars in Cleveland. Back by popular demand, the “Culinary Showdown” returns to FLAVOR this year. Top chefs from Cleveland will create a unique, mouth-watering dish. Each chef will have 30 minutes to stir up a winning quick-fire dish to impress our judges. The winning chef wins bragging rights for years to come.

Pre-sale tickets cost $40, $50 at the door. The event takes place from 7 to 11 tonight at Lago Custom Events at Aloft Hotel, Flats East Bank. Details are on the website. (Niesel) sceneflavor.com.

at 8:50 and tomorrow night at 7:15 at the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque. Tickets are $10, or $7 for members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

your son has been in a horrific car accident.’ ‘Well, give him some ice cream; he likes ice cream.’” It’s that sort of simple observation that makes LaPorte’s material stand out from the pack of other truck drivers turned comics. He performs tonight at 8 at Hilarities, where he has shows scheduled through Sunday.

Tickets start at $23. (William Hoffman) 2035 East Fourth St., 216-241-7425, pickwickandfrolic.com.

COMEDY

Tony Rock While not as well known as his superstar brother, comedian Chris Rock, Tony Rock has plenty going for him. In one funny routine, he talks about the “whitest thing” he ever saw. He recounts witnessing a citizen’s arrest at an airport when a guy leaped into “full white guy mode” after he saw someone take an elevator “without authorization.”

A great storyteller, Rock performs tonight at 7:30 at the Improv, where he has shows scheduled through Sunday. Tickets start at $17. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-696-IMPROV, clevelandimprov.com.

FRI

12/16

THEATER

rockhallstore.com

A Christmas with C.S. Lewis Based on the life and writings of C.S. Lewis, the theatrical production of A Christmas with C.S. Lewis provides a “heart-warming, funny and inspiring evening that will bring you closer to the man whose intellect and interests spanned from writing the children’s classic, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe to the landmark text in Christian apologist thinking, Mere Christianity.” Heady stuff. Tonight’s performance takes place at 7:30 at the Hanna Theatre, where performances continue through Sunday. Tickets are $20 to $35. (Niesel) 2067 East 14th St., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

216.515.8444

ART

Get official Rock Hall gear for the music fan in your family, or give yourself the rock star treatment! Inductee t-shirts, vinyl collections, year-long memberships and more gift items can be found in store and online.

Order by Dec. 16 for delivery by Christmas Eve!

1100 Rock and Roll Blvd.

Cleveland, OH 44114

Christian Bale as a Hollywood screenwriter experiencing a spiritual crisis. While some critics have dismissed the movie as something of a self-parody, New Yorker critic Richard Brody called the film “one of the great recent bursts of cinematic artistry.” It screens tonight

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

hasn’t forgotten his roots, and in his stand-up routines he makes simple observations about the oddities of life. In one performance, the comedian talked about putting your parents down as an emergency contact. “What are my parents going to do?” he joked. “‘Mrs. LaPorte,

Third Friday Stop by 78th Street Studios from 5 to 9 tonight for the year’s final Third Friday. As the various galleries and artist studios look forward to the new year, several new exhibitions will debut with opening receptions.

On the first floor, Zaina Gallery hosts an exhibition of work by the artists of Waterloo’s Brick Ceramic & Design Studio; the Cleveland West Arts League presents its

Annual Members Holiday Show; and E11even2 debuts Pure Imagination.

On the second floor, Hedge Gallery presents Healing Through Art, and Kenneth Paul Lesko hosts an opening for new work by Lissa Bockrath, talented painter and wife of former Cleveland Indians’ GM, Mark Shapiro. On the third floor, PopEye Gallery hosts a special holiday show, and Survival Kit presents live music at 9 p.m. Enter Tregoning & Company through an entrance on West 78th Street for new exhibitions by David Joseph and Jaime Morse. There’s plenty more to see throughout Cleveland’s “art maze.” Admission is free. (Usmani) 1300 West 78th St., 78thstreetstudios.com.

MUSIC

Ugly Sweater Night and Holiday Record Swap Mahall’s gets into the holiday spirit tonight. Local acts Duo Decible System, the Del Rios, Surfer Rex, Slug Fest, Cigarette Playdate, and the Beyonderers will perform on the main stage, and WRUW’s DJ Rachel H. will host a BYO record swap ’n’ listen in the bar area. In the locker room, the new Hingetown record shop Young Kingz will set up a popup shop; the store’s owners Brittany Benton (DJ Red-I) and Samantha Flowers (Playne Jayne) — aka the hip-hop act FreshProduce — will also spin their favorite records.

Anyone who wears an ugly sweater will receive discounts at the bar, the restaurant, and for bowling. Prizes for ugliest sweaters will be awarded throughout the night. Sweaters don’t have to be holiday-themed; they just have to be butt ugly. It all starts at 8 p.m., and admission is free. (Niesel) 13200 Madison Ave., Lakewood, 216-521-3280, mahalls20lanes.com.

SAT

12/17

SPORTS

Cavs vs. Los Angeles Lakers The Cavs looked unbeatable this season until suffering consecutive losses to the L.A. Clippers, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Chicago Bulls. Of course, it didn’t take them long to get back to their winning ways. Tonight at 7:30 at the Q, they take on the Los Angeles Lakers for the first time since star guard Kobe Bryant, with whom LeBron James had a fierce rivalry, retired. The Lakers have played well this season under first-year coach Luke Walton, but the Cavs are clearly the better team. Expect them to get the win.

Tickets start at $43. (Niesel)

1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, theqarena.com.

MUSIC

Mannheim Steamroller Christmas

By Chip Davis In various press releases and articles, Mannheim Steamroller’s Chip Davis proudly recalls trying to shop his New Age Christmas concept in the early ’80s and meeting with rejection from all the major labels and distributors. Released in 1984, Mannheim Steamroller Christmas went on to sell some 9 million albums, proving the record label execs wrong (again). The Ohio-born Davis then developed a larger-thanlife touring ensemble to bring the synth-heavy tunes to life. In 2009, Mannheim celebrated the 25th anniversary of that first Christmas album with a special two-CD set that included its renditions of tunes such as “Joy to the World” and “The First Noel.” The live show is a multimedia extravaganza, which is a good thing, since these smooth jazz renditions of yuletide tunes will often put you to sleep. Tonight’s concert takes place at 8 at the State Theatre. Tickets start at $10. (Niesel) 1519 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

SHOPPING

Rock ‘n’ Roll Holiday Flea Market Big-box retail outlets offer the usual assortment of prefab gifts that range from portable electronic devices to household items. But anyone looking for something outside the box has plenty of good options. Consider the Beachland Ballroom’s annual Rock ’n’ Holiday Flea Market. More than 25 vendors will be on hand for the event, which takes place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. today. It will feature art, clothing, records, vintage wares, jewelry and more. Food and beverages will be available in the Beachland Tavern throughout the day, and admission is free. (Niesel) 15711 Waterloo Rd., 216-383-1124, beachlandballroom.com.

SUN

12/18

FILM

Birthright The film and video distribution company Kino Lorber has worked for years on a DVD boxset of early African-American films that were all made regionally. The boxset has finally seen the light of day, and the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque is screening DCP versions of some of the best titles.

Dubbed “Pioneers of African-

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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WHITE CHRISTMAS THE MUSICAL

MUSIC & LYRICS BY IRVING BERLIN BOOK BY DAVID IVES AND PAUL BLAKE BASED UPON THE PARAMOUNT PICTURES FILM WRITTEN FOR THE SCREEN BY NORMAN KRASNA, NORMAN PANAMA AND MELVIN FRANK

DECEMBER 2 - 18

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

GET OUT

182 South Main St., Akron, 330-253-2488, akroncivic.com.

FILM

American Cinema,” the series is a major film history project that seeks to “collect, restore, and rerelease short and feature length films made by independent black filmmakers during the early part of the 20th century — primarily from the 1920s through the 1940s.”

The so-called “race” films were financed, produced, written, directed, distributed and exhibited by people of color. The films tackle taboo subjects such as interracial romance, racism, religion, spiritual salvation and damnation, and lynching. They also feature unique visual and narrative styles. Tonight at 6:30, the Cinematheque will screen Birthright, about a Harvard-educated black man who returns to the segregated South to build a school. The short film Darktown Revue precedes it.

Admission is $10, or $7 for members and students. (Niesel) 11610 Euclid Ave., 216-421-7450, cia.edu.

COMEDY

Cleveland Improv Jam The Angry Ladies of Improv has hosted the Cleveland Improv Jam for four years now. A few years back, Scene described the show as “fierce, formidable and very funny.” The women have some serious experience too. Katie White-Sonby is an actress who’s performed at Clague Playhouse, Karamu and Kennedy’s Cabaret.

Marjorie Preston is an alumna of Something Dada and Rockwell 9 improvisational comedy troupes. The event begins with a short-form set of improv games, followed by a longform improv set. It begins at 5 p.m. at Coffee Phix. Arrive early if you want to sign up and perform. Admission is free. (Niesel) 4485 Mayfield Rd., South Euclid, 216381-5706, coffeephixcafe.com.

MUSIC

Holiday Choir Classic Area choirs such as the Woodridge Show Choir, Stow Munroe Falls Ensemble, and Firestone High School Ensemble will be on hand for today’s Holiday Choir Classic concert at the Akron Civic Theatre. Proceeds from the concert, which takes place at 2:30 p.m., benefit the Beacon of Light fund of the Akron Community Foundation, a scholarship fund started in the wake of the tragic death of Woodridge High grad Brandon Allen, who died in a car accident. Tickets are $12, or $7 for children aged 3 to 12. (Niesel)

Straub-Huillet Double Feature French painter Paul Cezanne created an influential body of work during his lifetime. Cezanne, who died back in 1906, wanted the senses of “sight” and “touch” to meld in some manner.

Directors Jean-Marie Straub and Daniele Huillet chronicle his career in their documentary Cezanne — Conversation with Joachim Gasquet.

It shows today at 1:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Art along with A Visit to the Louvre, another documentary from Straub and Huillet. Tickets are $9, $7 for CMA members, seniors and students.

(Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org.

MON

12/19

NIGHTLIFE

The Second Annual 40-Oz. Man of the Year Now That’s Class boasts many loyal 40-oz. club members. So to commemorate the group, the punk rock club will host the second annual 40-Oz. Man of the Year Contest tonight at 9. Contestants will drink two 40-oz. beverages. The person who finishes first will be crowned king and receive a $50 gift certificate for Now That’s Class and a satin jacket that says “NTC 40 OZ. MAN OF THE YEAR.” Anyone 21 and over can enter. Admission is free. (Niesel) 11213 Detroit Ave., 216-221-8576, nowthatsclass.net.

BRUNCH

Industry Brunch Brunch isn’t just a Saturday/Sunday thing. Over at Mahall’s, you can grab a great brunch on Mondays as the club caters to industry folks who have the day off. Not that you have to work in the restaurant industry to indulge. The menu features items such as Chicken and Doughnuts, a dish that features three pieces of fried chicken along with two Old Hushers doughnuts. Other staples include the Everything Pretzel and the Creamy Egg Sandwich. A live DJ from WCSB will be on hand to spin cool tunes too.

It runs from noon to 4. (Niesel) 13200 Madison Ave., Lakewood, 216-521-3280, mahalls20lanes.com.

NIGHTLIFE

Monday Night Trivia Do you have tons of obscure music knowledge? Are you a student of fast food menus and their nuanced

histories? What say you about the geographic evolution of Scotch whisky? Tonight’s your chance to wow your friends, make yourself instantly more desirable to someone you’re newly dating, and hang with Cleveland’s headiest hipsters and hot dog lovers. It’s the Happy Dog Monday Night Trivia. Starting at 8 p.m., expect themed rounds — it’s a crapshoot — and general knowledge questions that seem considerably trickier than some of the other live trivia locales in town. Obviously, have a hot dog and a craft brew while you’re at it. And arrive early.

The tables fill up quickly. (Sam Allard) 5801 Detroit Ave., 216-651-9474, happydogcleveland.com.

FILM

Movie Mondays Every Monday, Cleveland Cinemas hosts $6 Movie Mondays, where film fans can catch up on the latest Hollywood flicks for significantly reduced prices. Bring your friends and family and make Movie Mondays a weekly tradition — many theaters even offer discounted concession stand items. Participating theaters include Apollo Theatre, Capitol Theatre, Cedar Lee Theatre, Chagrin Cinemas, Shaker Square

Cinemas and Tower City Cinemas.

Unfortunately, additional charges apply for 3D movies. (Alaina Nutile) clevelandcinemas.com.

FOOD

Wing Ding Doodle Blues icon Howlin’ Wolf famously covered “Wang Dang Doodle,” the old blues tune penned by Willie Dixon. Prosperity Social Club in Tremont has adopted that slogan, calling its wing night Wing Ding Doodle. The weekly event features specials on Buffalo wings and cold brews. Prosperity will not only serve up substantial, $1 whole wings, but it’ll also offering meatless Monday “wing” baskets for vegans.

Discounted drafts and a playlist of vintage-electric blues and soulful R&B curated by local musician Clint Holley will be on tap as well.

Wing Ding Doodle takes place every Monday from 6 p.m. to midnight.

(Niesel) 1109 Starkweather Ave., 216-937-1938, prosperitysocialclub.com.

MUSIC

The Pop Tarts: I’m Wishing for a Cleveland Christmas Since two original songs from the locally based PopTarts’ Christmas

album became part of 2012 Lifetime movie Love at the Christmas Table, it makes sense that the group would throw a special Christmas bash. Tonight at 7:30 at Club Velvet at the Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park, the group hosts the Pop Tarts: I’m Wishing for a Cleveland Christmas. There will be a Mr. Jingeling giveaway, “Santa’s surprise,” Twigbee Treats and a free Christmas gift from the Pop Tarts.

Tickets are $35. (Niesel) 10705 Northfield Rd., Northfield, 330-908-7771, hrrocksinonorthfieldpark.com.

TUE

12/20

COMEDY

Mike Polk Jr. Show Live If you’ve seen local comedian Mike Polk Jr., the man behind the Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Video, the Factory of Sadness video (parts 1 and 2), Last Call Cleveland comedy troupe and his very own show on Fox 8 (aptly called the Mike Polk Jr. Show), perform live, you know he really thrives on having an audience at his disposal.

He hosts the Mike Polk Jr. Show Live tonight at 8 at Hilarities.

Tickets are $5. (Niesel)

2035 East Fourth St., 216-241-7425, pickwickandfrolic.com.

MUSIC

Vinyl Night While sales of CDs continue to decline, vinyl has seen a resurgence.

In fact, the recent Jack White album became the fastest-selling vinyl album since Nielsen Soundscan began compiling vinyl sales figures in 1991. Jukebox owner Alex Budin has described his 1,350-square-foot music-focused bar in the Hingetown ’hood as “a place where people can expect to hear and learn about music of multiple genres, all of which is concentrated in a constantly evolving jukebox.” In keeping with that spirit and recognizing the burgeoning popularity of vinyl, the club hosts a vinyl night every Tuesday that serves as a listening party for new releases. The place has partnered with Loop in Tremont so that patrons can hear a new album on vinyl. You can bring your own vinyl and spin it too. We love the concept.

It all starts at 7 p.m. (Niesel) 1404 West 29th St., 216-206-7699, jukeboxcle.com.

Find more events @clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

216.241.6000 • clevelandplayhouse.com GROUPS OF TEN OR MORE SAVE. 216.400.7027

Tony Award ® Winner - Best Play

C LY BOU RN E PARK

BY B R U C E N O R R I S // D I R E C T E D BY D O N A L D C A R R I E R

D E C E M B E R 7 - 17 // T H E H E L E N

TICKETS START AT $25 NOV 25 - DEC 23 • ALLEN THEATRE written by PHILIP GRECIAN • directed by JOHN McCLUGGAGE based on the motion picture written by JEAN SHEPHERD, LEIGH BROWN & BOB CLARK

CASE WESTERN RESERVE U N I V E R S I T Y // CLEVELAND P L AY H O US E MFA ACTING PROGRAM

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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STAGE AN INVENTIVE (BUT LONG) PREFACE TO PETER PAN The lost boys return to Dobama in Peter and the Starcatcher

By Christine Howey THE THING YOU GOTTA LOVE about prequels is that they’re kind of like watching reruns of the old Columbo TV show. In that series starring Peter Falk, you were always clued in on who the murderer was.

Prequels offer the same feeling since the audience knows where the story is headed. Peter and the Starcatcher, now at Dobama Theatre, is a prequel for Peter Pan, a story that lives in our very chromosomes.

Which is why this encore production at Dobama uses a plethora of theatrical tricks to enliven this play by Rick Elice with music by Wayne Barker.

With inventive stagecraft firmly in place, thanks to director Melissa Therese Crum (who steps in for Nathan Motta, who directed last year), the story is still stubbornly obtuse.

There is so much exposition thrown into the first act, one wishes that there were a time out called and a referee could emerge and clear up some basic facts.

These facts involve two British ships, the elegant and speedy Wasp helmed by Captain Scott and the dumpy Neverland, each headed in different directions. Each are carrying identical-looking trunks that were switched at the dock by Captain Slank of the Neverland (played by a snarly Brett DiCello); one trunk contains the Queen’s riches, which is carted off to the Neverland, and the other trunk is filled with sand, which is now on the Wasp.

Also on board the Neverland are three dragooned orphan boys, one who doesn’t even have a name but is eventually called (ahem) Peter.

Meanwhile the Wasp is infiltrated by a gaggle of pirates intent on stealing the Queen’s booty, led by the fearsomely limp-wristed Black Stache, named after his snot mop. He will eventually earn the name Captain Hook due to a tragic (and hilarious) trunk mishap.

There is also Molly, the precocious daughter of Lord Aster. He is on the Wasp to escort the Queen’s trunk to the far-off kingdom of Rundoon. There are all kinds of potentially interesting elements at work during Act 1, including a magical amulet, “starstuff”

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that lets people be who they want to be, a flying cat and other things too numerous to mention. All of this is meant to recreate an imaginary world where anything is possible.

Trouble is, too many things are possible and because it’s never clear which ship the actors are on, and since they play multiple roles, it all begins to glom together. Anyhow, the ships are soon reunited, Molly rubs elbows with Peter-to-be and starts playing “mother” to the lost boys.

So by the second act, the plot and characters of Peter Pan begin taking shape.

As the central couple in this enterprise, Luke Wehner as Peter and Molly Israel as Molly have moments when their characters resonate fully.

and these two performances that no amount of clever staging (umbrellas popping up from tiny trapdoors in the floor and a crocodile in silhouette with glowing red eyes!) can cover up.

On the other hand, the happily shameless Christopher Bohan as Black Stache once again crawls into the pocket of the audience and stays there. His every gesture is operatic and his every utterance is pronounced with error-prone precision. Sure, many of his malaprops aren’t that funny (“you’re splitting rabbits” for splitting hairs), but Bohan invests them with such import you find yourself laughing in spite of it.

His band of rascals is led by everloyal Smee, portrayed by the inventive

PETER AND THE STARCATCHER THROUGH DEC. 31 AT DOBAMA THEATRE, 2340 LEE RD., CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, 216-932-3396, DOBAMA.ORG

Unfortunately, neither actor has an abundance of stage charisma, a necessary element when the task is to thoroughly involve the audience in your series of dilemmas. There’s a distance between the audience

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

Andrew Gorell, whose character reaches either its zenith or nadir, and maybe both, when impersonating a recently disemboweled stomach flopping on the floor. James Rankin also triggers laughs as uptight

Mrs. Bumbrake, Molly’s nanny who develops a liking for sailor Alf, a continually farting Robert Ellis.

Tim Keo also adds some zip in his two roles, one of which is the island king with a priceless name: Fighting Prawn.

But Luke Brett as Prentiss and Shaun O’Neill as Ted leave a lot of laughs un-chortled due to their timid approach to their roles as Peter’s pals.

And the fine actor Jason Leupold is saddled with the thankless role of bland Lord Aster, as is Nathan A. Lilly with his assignment as often trussed and gagged Captain Scott.

Yes, there are fart jokes and lots of yelling and running around, which you’d think would make this a perfect show for kids. But at a running time of almost three hours, with one intermission, it’s a long sit through a complicated story, even for adults.

And by the end, no one could fault an audience member for wanting to grab a handful of starstuff so she could be what she really wanted to be. Gone.

scene@clevescene.com t@christinehowey

MOVIES

+ + + + + JOSHUA ROTHKOPF ‒ TIME OUT NEW YORK

COLLATERAL BEAUTY? PLEASE.

NATALIE PORTMAN WILL FLOOR YOU WITH HER TOUR DE FORCE PERFORMANCE. PETER TRAVERS ‒ ROLLING STONE

Even an all-star cast can’t dislodge this steaming pile of holiday pap

By Sam Allard IF YOU WEREN’T AWARE THAT Collateral Beauty, the gooey holiday drama out Friday in wide release, was directed by David Frankel (the same hero behind Marley & Me and lesser Owen Wilson vehicles, to say nothing of Hope Springs), you’ll get wise within a few short minutes.

Because look, there, it’s Will Smith, holding forth at his chic Manhattan advertising agency on the subject of love and commerce.

He is, we’re assured, the soul of the company. And his rainbow staff of millennials fawn over him, hugging notepads and coffee mugs that might as well have “prop” scrawled on masking tape on their sides, while their boss and founder reminds them how crucial advertising is in this day and age, how advertising lets people get in touch with their hearts or something. It’s delivered and received with the same smiling solemnity as megachurch sermons, and it couldn’t be any yuckier or emptier.

And we’re under way.

Jumping a few years ahead, now, and Will Smith’s Howard is down in the dumps. He lost his daughter to a rare disease two years back — so much for advertising! — and can now be found, if at all, erecting huge and elaborate edifices of dominos in the office’s common areas. Whence these multicolored dominos sprang, or what the heck they’re supposed to represent, who can say? Howard is Checked Out. That’s the point. He rides his bike all over New York City like a zombie, barely speaks, and certainly can’t be bothered to sign off on important company business. He can’t even be persuaded to eat.

Sensing that the company’s viability hangs in the balance, Howard’s three top partners — Whit (Ed Norton), Claire (Kate Winslet), and Simon (Michael Pena) — conspire to lift their pal from his mood. They hire a P.I. (Ann Dowd) and learn that Howard has been writing despairing letters to “Death,” “Love” and “Time.” And despite misgivings from Claire, they hire a trio of actors to embody

these recipients. To visit Howard and engage with him, essentially as angels, to pull him up by his bootstraps.

This improbable troupe (Helen Mirren, Keira Knightly, and ‘breakout star’ Jacob Latimore) on this improbable mission further studs the A-list cast’s starstuddedness, but confounds a plot so overflowing with boilerplate B-storylines it feels like an anthology.

Whit is a neglectful father, for instance, and a recovering philanderer to boot. Even around the holidays, his daughter refuses to spend time with him. Claire has neglected her personal life, devoting herself fully to the company. Only now is she considering having a child. She browses for sperm donors at every available moment, just in case you weren’t aware that this was on her mind, and she’s worried that it might be too late. Simon — say it with me — has cancer. He has cancer, you guys. And he and his wife just had a child, too. Dang!

Here’s the best part, though: Through the intercession of the acting troupe that was meant to help Howard, the partners all realize that they need some help, too.

Meanwhile, Howard’s steeling himself for some AA-style grief counseling, which leads to one of two big twists, both of which non-mobiledevice-scrolling viewers will spot on the horizon at about the 20-minute mark.

All that said, with actors this good, glimmers of much better movies refract off Collateral Beauty’s hideous sheen. Norton, Winslet and Mirren each can trick you, once or twice, into thinking that they are playing actual characters, that this is an actual story, that the whole thing is not just a construct cooked up by sinister Hollywood executives and their lab techs who are just as eager to cash in on the holiday season as the advertising industry.

sallard@clevescene.com t@scenesallard

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J A C K I E T HE F IL M.C O M

EXCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENT STARTS

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16

Invite you and a guest to a special screening of

Monday, December 19 at 7:00 P.M. Regal Crocker Park Visit SonyScreenings.com and enter the code PASS9SM for your chance to download a pair of passes. *No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Limit one pass per person. Each pass admits two. No phone calls, please. Seating is not guaranteed. Arrive early. Theater is not responsible for overbooking.

IN THEATERS WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 21 | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CHICKEN AND OUR 14 GOURMET SAUCES

★★★★★ “Worth the stop & future excursions from the Near West Side in the future.I can’t find one thing wrong with V’s and the woman taking care of us was just the nicest and personable person ever. For all the food we ordered it was very reasonably priced and held up well on the ride home/ Stopping here in the near future is in order as it puts lousy KFC’s, Popeyes, etc to shame in terms of quality, price, and customer service.” - Jesco D. ★★★★★ “I went here after the good reviews and I was impressed. I had the regular/mild batter. The chicken was light, crispy and delicious. The rice and greens is ingenious! They have a little kick to them but quite tasty. They were buttery and lightly sweet. I enjoyed my meal and will return in the future.” - Ladonna G.

★★★★★ “This is some Seriously delicious chicken. I have lived very close, and almost drive by there daily.

Thought it was part of the convenient store, so I would not go there. After reading the reviews and being extremely hungry, I took the plunge, and I am more than glad I did. I will be coming here so much more.” - Stephanie L. ★★★★★ “It’s no joke, best fried chicken in Cleveland.

They’ve got plenty of sides, but don’t kid yourself, it’s all about the chicken. While there’s a variety of flavors the staff might not give you many clues past identifying the individual flavors. Luckily there’s a brief explanation of them at the restaurant.” Noah F. ★★★★★ “Oh my gosh this place has the best food.The chicken is superbly trimmed and seasoned to perfection. Normally I always get the fried chicken but tonight I went with the fish dinner for the first time and can’t stop jumping up-and-down with joy. Make sure you get the honey biscuits and at least try the greens and rice. Thank you for such great service and the culinary gift you’ve given us.” - Sarah J.

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“I absolutely love the food here! Best fried chicken I’ve ever had. People should stop in and grab a family chicken dinner instead of spending cash at KFC or any other fast food chicken chains. Best chicken ever!” - Bunny Marie L. “I absolutely loved this place! I will be back soon!”

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

EAT

COMEBACK TRAIL Neighborhood butcher shops are back in a big way, and there’s no better example than the recently opened Ohio City Provisions

By Douglas Trattner AH, THE GOOD OLD DAYS, WHEN every neighborhood had a butcher shop where Mom went to get her Sunday roast and the butcher would slide little Jimmy a freshsliced round of bologna.

Those days might be good and gone, but the friendly neighborhood butcher shop is making a comeback after decades of decimation at the hands of supermarkets. That would be good news on its own, but this narrative gets better: Modern butcher shops like Adam Lambert and Trevor Clatterbuck’s brand new Ohio City Provisions (3208 Lorain Ave., 216-465-2762, ohiocityprovisions. com) deliver better products and service than even our parents and grandparents enjoyed.

“There are butchers who can cut me under the table, but I think where we really differ is the product: where we source it and how we present it,” Lambert explains. “It’s the same principle as being a chef: You start with great products and just don’t fuck them up. That’s always been my motto.”

Most artisan butcher shops emphasize buying whole animals from well-run local farms, but these guys take that notion a step further. A few steps further, actually. Many of the animals that become delicious store products start life at Wholesome Valley, a 200-acre Amish-assisted farm that

Clatterbuck recently purchased to provide his Fresh Fork CSA members with the best possible produce, dairy and meat.

More than just a feel-good moniker, Wholesome Valley truly is a wholesome place to live if you’re livestock. Berkshire hogs loll about in cool, muddy creek beds while gorging on whey. Hereford cattle wander the landscape ruminating on grass. Chicken, duck and turkey literally have free range of the place. It goes without saying that all meats — either raised by the owners or purchased from like-minded farmers in the area — are raised without antibiotics, hormones or steroids.

Step into OCP, a converted double storefront on Lorain Avenue, and you’ll likely see Lambert working in his office: a spotless 45-degree cutting room where he breaks down animals, grinds, seasons and stuffs sausage, and transforms various cuts of pork, beef and poultry into preservative-free deli meats. The wall of windows reveals all, a nod to the level of transparency that pervades the entire operation.

Chilled cases are stocked with cold cuts like house-smoked turkey breast, salami, pistachioflecked mortadella and grass-fed beef bologna enriched with beef liver. Pates and terrines range from rustic pate de campagne to

silky-smooth chicken liver terrine.

Alongside thick-cut porterhouses and lamb chops are pork ribs, porchettas and fresh-ground grassfed beef, which at $8 per pound is less expensive than Whole Foods because there is no middle man.

Shoppers shouldn’t expect to see row upon row of pre-carved steaks, chops and filets like they do at the grocery, says Lambert, who leads me into a rear walk-in cooler filled with sides of beef, pork and lamb.

“I’m not going to have 40 steaks laid out,” he says. “We put out what we offer and when people want them, I’ll go cut them. Everything starts to age and lose quality as soon as it’s cut.”

That level of service extends to all facets of the operation. Sure, Lambert will cut a steak as thick as you’d like, but he’ll also gladly and free of charge French a lamb rack, carve out a skin-on pork shoulder, or vac-seal a pound or two of ground beef for your freezer.

“What I’m really enjoying is the customer interaction — to be able to talk people through dishes,” says Lambert, adding that he recently guided a nervy young man through his first home-cooked dinner for a lady friend.

Lambert and Clatterbuck are joined three days a week by chef Parker Bosley, a leader in the farmto-table movement both here and elsewhere.

“We joke that we have 100 years of cooking experience behind the line and Parker is 65 of them,” Clatterbuck says.

In addition to the meat selection, OCP stocks an all-Ohio lineup of cheese, eggs, milk, yogurt and butter from grass-fed Guernsey cows that’s as yellow as daffodils.

A freezer stocks whole ducks, chickens and feet for stock, but also stock itself, made from the very same chickens, ducks, turkeys, beef and pork. Dry goods like jams, honey, Amish grains, maple syrup and fresh-baked breads join in-season produce like cabbage, Brussels sprouts, carrots, potatoes, garlic apples, squash and onions.

In a temperature- and humiditycontrolled curing chamber, items like coppa, lonzino, prosciutto, bacon and pancetta hang to slowly dry, age and cure. When ready, they’ll join the other deli meats in the case.

Coming soon, says Lambert, will be cooking and butchery classes during which customers will learn how to break down larger cuts of meat into steaks, chops, sausage and stock.

Ohio City Provisions is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week.

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

39

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OPEN CHRISTMAS DAY & NEW YEAR’S DAY

“I’M A LITTLE TIRED RIGHT now,” Ben Woods, head baker of Fluffy Duck Cafe (10001 Chester Ave., 216-218-9447, fluffyduckcafe. com) laments just after 10 a.m. following a full morning of baking and running deliveries to the west side. He’ll have to adjust to the 6 a.m. start time, Monday through Friday.

The people, after all, need their morning pick-me-up.

On the ground floor of the newly constructed Innova luxury apartment building on the Cleveland Clinic campus, Fluffy Duck hopes to draw a crowd from the busy University Circle area. Their space is pristine, totaling 2,500 square feet, with two-thirds of it taken up by a state-of-the-art baking kitchen.

Pastries, muffins, cookies, scones and quiche rest on a long slab of pale marble behind a sturdy glass divider.

Large windows let the smells, sights and sounds drift from the kitchen into the open seating area. A La Marzocco espresso machine steams away, while Grand Rapids-roasted MadCap coffee steeps near the register.

Woods has a quiet, down-toearth demeanor, but he’s classically trained. “I started cooking in bars and minimum wage places where I could get a job,” he says of his early years in Painesville. “I went to the Culinary Institute of America, checked it out and liked the baking program. Baking is a lot of repetition but you can change things, do more with the same ingredients.”

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From there he moved to Portland and then Savannah, where he met Emily Cain, head barista and director of the coffee program at Fluffy Duck. The two moved to Cleveland, holding down jobs at Local Sol and Six Shooter Coffee, respectively, while they prepared to open the cafe.

This week they launch a new sandwich menu. “The favorite so far, which I did not expect, is the caramelized onion and pumpkin rye,” Woods says. The rye bread is paired with Ohio City Provision’s pastrami, Dijon mustard, caraway aioli, and sauerkraut to create one of three hot pressed sandwiches on their menu. Another takes his signature pickled walnut and white cheddar whole wheat bread and fits in Brie, sliced apples, and walnuts.

Fluffy Duck partnered with Fresh Fork Market for its produce, eggs and dairy, used in everything from cold salads to cakes and tarts.

After mentioning his new venture to Trevor Clatterbuck, co-founder of Fresh Fork and partner in Ohio City Provisions, Clatterbuck brought Fluffy Duck breads into the shop, even incorporating them into offerings as part of the new butcher’s lunch series.

“That’s what it’s all about,” says Woods, proving the network of artisan chefs and bakers in Cleveland remains strong.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

EAT NUEVO CLEVELAND Amazing Views of Cleveland’s Lakefront

Behind the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 1000 East 9th St., Cleveland, OH 44114 (216) 737-1OOO Photo courtesy of Aladdin’s

ALADDIN’S TO FILL FORMER MCDONALD’S SPOT AT THE CLINIC

NUEVOMODMEX.COM JOIN US FOR BRUNCH EVERY SUNDAY

By Douglas Trattner A LITTLE OVER A YEAR AGO, Cleveland Clinic made the controversial decision to give McDonald’s the boot after 20 years by not renewing its lease. The decision, the hospital said, was intended to promote healthier choices by patients, employees and visitors in an attempt to curtail chronic disease.

Now we have learned what will replace it: Aladdin’s Eatery.

“We are proud to have been chosen by the Clinic to open an Aladdin’s restaurant in the former McDonald’s space,” explains Gaelle Nasr, marketing manager for the locally based Mediterranean restaurant chain. “This location will feature our award-winning menu with modified versions of several dishes that comply with the Clinic’s cafeteria policies.”

Across 28 locations, Aladdin’s Eatery offers freshly prepared Lebanese-American foods with a wide selection of vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, making them a great fit for the healthfocused Clinic.

That location, as well as a new Strongsville shop in the Pearl South Plaza Shopping Center, is expected to open in late winter or early spring.

NEW MANAGEMENT AT MONCHO’S USHERS IN CHANGE AT BELOVED COLOMBIAN EATERY If you’ve dined lately at the Brooklyn Centre-based eatery Moncho’s, adored for its warm hospitality

and satisfying Colombian food, you likely noticed some pretty significant changes. For starters, owners Isabel Montoya and her father Moncho no longer are onsite to greet you. And second, the menu is now filled with a slew of new Mexican dishes.

Two months ago, Montoya and her family made the difficult decision to pull back from running the business for personal matters. They decided to bring in new management to run the restaurant on a day-to-day basis. They went with the owners of the Lakewood-based Mexican restaurant El Torito as they already had a working relationship with them as the owners of that building.

“They are people we know and trust,” Montoya explains.

When I spoke to Montoya, she said that all decisions about menu changes would need to go through her and her family. Too much was on the line to let things change too drastically.

“We worked so hard for it and we think it has been successful, but I literally do not have the time to manage it right now,” she notes. “It’s still very much ours, and we’re in constant communication. Everything needs to be approved.”

But she admitted that the El Torito folks have some pretty strong ideas about which way they want to see the menu go — and it isn’t always in line with the old Moncho’s way.

“We have to kind of reel them back in because it’s mostly Colombian customers,” she adds

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

When I spoke with Hortencia Figueroa, the new operator of Moncho’s, she too stressed that only slight modifications would be made.

“It’s being kept as Moncho’s — the name, the food, but we have introduced a few more Mexican items to the menu,” she admits. “We kept a lot of the old items that were popular, but we introduced a lot of other items too.”

To outside observers, it appears that more than a few changes have been made. Looking at Moncho’s new menu, which was recently posted to its Facebook page, diners will see a menu that looks to be nearly identical to that of El Torito.

Appetizers like the warm chicharron with guacamole and green sauce, breaded and fried chorizo fireballs, and breaded and fried calamari all are straight off the El Torito menu.

Tucked among pages of Mexican items like tacos, fajitas, quesadillas, enchiladas and even chimichangas are only a few remaining Moncho’s dishes like Bandeja Paisa, Cubano sandwiches and tostones.

Also new is lunch service and delivery, says Figueroa.

Ultimately, it’s up to diners to decide if they welcome the changes to Moncho’s or not. But you can be sure that Isabel Montoya and her

family will be watching very closely.

“We very much love Moncho’s,” she says.

PRAISE THE BBQ GODS: MABEL’S NOW OFFERING TAKEOUT When Mabel’s BBQ opened this past April, it did so with a few selfimposed limitations. Knowing that the restaurant would be slammed from the jump, chef and owner Michael Symon placed an embargo on patio seating, catering and, to the ire of many, takeout service.

The patio was up and running very soon after opening and just recently, the restaurant began accepting takeout orders. So all you dine-in customers who have been ordering suspiciously large amounts of food — and a doggie bag — now can simply call and place an order.

Better still: Very soon, customers will be able to place an order for those crispy pig ears, lamb ribs, beef brisket and Polish Girl sandwiches on the website.

“It’s going great,” Symon says.

As for catering, no plans currently are in place to change that tack.

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner

Spreading love around the world one sub at a time. | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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| clevescene.com m | December 14 - 20, 2016

MUSIC

CHRISTMAS IN THE ROUND Singer-songwriter Ryan Humbert takes a traditional approach for this year’s Holiday Extravaganza

By Jeff Niesel ONE OF THE MORE TALENTED singer-songwriters in town, Ryan Humbert has paid tribute to singer Roy Orbison and country icon Hank Williams with elaborate stage shows. He’s also done the same for Bob Dylan with Tangled Up In Dylan: the Music of Bob Dylan, a tribute show that features many of the singer’s most famous songs. And he writes and performs original music too.

In addition, Humbert has a soft spot for the holidays and hosts a holiday-themed concert each year.

This year’s annual Ryan Humbert Holiday Extravaganza: Country Christmas will take place on Dec. 15 and 16 at the Akron Civic Theatre. The event will feature Humbert and singer Emily

Bates with a few of their closest musical friends along for the ride.

For its entire 8-year run, the event has taken place at the Akron Civic Theatre. The show hasn’t always been the same, however. For the first two Holiday Extravaganzas, Humbert played with a string quartet. In the third year, he had a soul revival, and the fourth year featured a variety show. The fifth year turned into a rowdy rock ’n’ roll Christmas, and Humbert played alongside a big band for the sixth year. Last year, the local bluegrass/country band Hillbilly Idol backed Humbert for the entire show.

“I’ve always loved Christmas music, and I thought it would be fun to put together a series of

shows that give people a reason to get into the holiday spirit,” says Humbert when asked about what first inspired the event.

This year, the holiday extravaganza will exclusively feature holiday songs in a traditional version. In the past, the shows have featured covers and original tunes.

“We’ve been beat up in a lot of ways in 2016, and we want to help people get into the holiday spirit by playing classic Christmas songs,” says Humbert. “We want to bring a fun Christmas show to downtown Akron. I have great musicians in the band. It’s kind of Michael Buble-style this year. I firmly believe that Christmas music is right up there with the American

Songbook. The Mel Torme and Nat Red Fang King Cole hits are terrific; everyone knows those songs. That’s how important they are to the fabric of our musical history. The songs are so well written, and they’re sturdy too. You can do a jazz or rock or country version of them. As long as you do it with love, the songs will hold up. They’re just so much fun to sing and play.”

The show will also be performed in the round; attendees can sit on all four sides of the performance area on the Akron Civic stage.

“I’ve always loved the intimate, storyteller feel of in-the-round performances and thought it would be fun to bring that to the stage of the Civic for this year’s holiday performances,” says Torche | clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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MUSIC Humbert. “I think it will allow us to really connect with the audience and make them feel like we’re performing right in their living room. The Civic has never done this, and I’ve never done a show in the round. We’ll be in the middle of the stage.”

There will be a walkway that will allow Humbert and Bates to walk around the audience.

“I wanted to find something new and different, and I wanted the show to be traditional and a real feel-good event,” says Humbert.

“I didn’t want it to be smaller, but more intimate. I wanted to get that point across by being in the round.”

The shows serve as benefit concerts and will raise funds for Cleveland Clinic Akron General’s Muffins for Mammograms program, which provides free mammograms year-round for uninsured or under-insured women throughout Northeast Ohio.

“It’s hard to believe this is our eighth Holiday Extravaganza and our third year helping our friends at Muffins for Mammograms,” Humbert says. “I truly love supporting this organization.

They help so many people in our community.”

His mother successfully beat breast cancer through the treatment she received at Cleveland Clinic Akron General.

battle as well.”

Akron AAA Auto Club, Cleveland Clinic Akron General, the Greater Akron Chamber, FirstEnergy and the Summit FM serve as the official sponsors of the event and help connect it to the Akron community.

“Ryan’s Holiday Extravaganza has become a tradition in our area,” says Howard Parr, executive director of the Akron Civic in a press release. “We’re excited to partner with Ryan again to raise funds for Muffins for Mammograms, so they can continue helping women in need.”

During each performance a small live auction will be held, and all proceeds will benefit the Muffins for Mammograms program.

“We have the opportunity for someone to throw out a first pitch at an Akron Rubber Ducks game, and we have a package from OHventures, a company with a great website that includes all kinds of stuff to do in Ohio,” says Humbert when asked about the auction. “The third package will include a special prize from the Summit. We keep it pretty small.

We’re not auctioneers so we just do three bigger items.”

Humbert says he wasn’t thinking the event would become a holiday tradition when he first started it. But now that it’s up and running, he imagines he’ll keep doing it as long as interest remains high.

“If somebody would have asked me after the first year, I don’t know

RYAN HUMBERT HOLIDAY EXTRAVAGANZA: COUNTRY CHRISTMAS 7:30 P.M. THURSDAY, DEC. 15 AND FRIDAY, DEC. 16, AKRON CIVIC THEATRE, 182 SOUTH MAIN ST., 330-253-2488.

TICKETS: $20 EACH/$35 FOR COUPLES, AKRONCIVIC.COM

“She had breast cancer in December of 2013 and successfully completed her treatment and had a great experience as far as cancer treatment goes,” says Humbert.

“The folks there made it easier for her. She loved her doctor. It doesn’t take much for Muffins to provide one person with a mammogram.

We raise funds to help the uninsured and underinsured women in our neighborhood.

Overall, we’ve donated five grand over the last few years. For a local band, that’s a huge contribution.

That makes a nice impact. They’ve helped so many people in our community, and we wanted to give back. I’m so glad we can give back to them to help others fight that

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

if I would have known if I’d keep doing it,” he says. “This is always something I look forward to. Every year, people start asking me in the fall about it. As long as we have the interest from friends and fans and communities, we’ll keep doing it.”

The eighth annual Ryan Humbert Holiday Extravaganza: Christmas in the Round happens at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 15, and Friday, Dec. 16, at the Akron Civic Theatre. Tickets are $20 for general admission or $35 for couples (a date-night special). Find details at akroncivic.com.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

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49

MUSIC

“Through him, I found Merle Travis, who also became a big influence on me. When you’re growing up and a guitarist, you hear about ‘Travis picking.’ I never knew what it meant.

It’s a reference to him. He’s the first guy to become famous with a thumb pick.”

After Bankhurst moved back to Cleveland from Columbus, he discovered Tommy Emmanuel, an Australian thumb-and-finger-style guitarist who’s become a YouTube sensation on account of his distinctive style. Bankhurst picked up that style of music.

Turns out, he’s pretty damned good at it. A few years back, he won first place at International Home of the Legends Contest and the top prize was a $3,000 Gretsch guitar.

For his debut CD, 2013’s At First Sight, he went to Nashville to record with the late Pete Huttlinger, another finger-style player who’s played Carnegie Hall. Bankhurst showed him some music, and Huttlinger liked it and said he wanted to record the album at his studio that’s known for its vintage gear. The disc features 10 original tunes that show off his incredible guitar skills.

It also includes a few covers too, most notably a new arrangement of Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely” for which Bankhurst makes his guitar sound like a cello. Though inspired by the guitar work of Phish’s Trey Anastasio, Bankhurst embraces a wide range of musical styles on the instrumental album.

“I had a lot of original ideas for that album and so I went to Nashville to record with Pete Huttlinger,” says Bankhurst. “We recorded it at his house, and it was a great experience.”

Back in 2014, Bankhurst started working on a followup, Tradition Pickin’. He recorded locally with producer and musician Brian Straw

songs influenced me. I knew them so well, and it was some of the best stuff I was playing at that point.

They were still original in terms of my take on them. The album had a bluesy feel on a lot of it. I had ideas for new arrangements. I think that’s a big thing in this small community.

You can play the tunes, but you need to try to make them your own. It’s understood that it’s okay to do that. It felt right to honor the musicians that carved the path I’m on.”

That album features acoustic solo guitar, though there are two tracks that feature local bassist Kevin Johnson and Danny Jenkins from the local alt-country act Speedbumps.

Adam Boose did the mastering at his locally based Cauliflower Audio, and the music was recorded over a period of six months. Bankhurst produced the album himself.

“It was more difficult and a little more stressful,” he says of doing the production himself. “I had to dictate everything. I told Brian [Straw] when I didn’t like how something sounded. I would move a mic or add more bass. It was hard because I was working with one set of ears. I would ask [Brian] for advice, but I was the one who made the call. It was a great learning experience, and we enjoyed doing it.”

Billed as Dan Bankhurst and Friends, the upcoming Nighttown show represents Bankhurst’s first performance in Cleveland this year.

“The show will be different, and people will be surprised,” he says. “I’ll be singing this time and digging back into my deeper roots. I grew up liking James Taylor and Eric Clapton and ’70s music. I also like Hendrix and blues players like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert King. I’ll do some cover tunes from that era. I’ve also never played electric guitar at a Nighttown show. I’ll come out for a few finger style tunes and then the band will

“The show will be different, and people will be surprised.”

WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM HIS FRIENDS Guitarist Dan Bankhurst returns to town to play a special show at Nighttown

By Jeff Niesel A NORTHEAST OHIO NATIVE, guitarist Dan Bankhurst played around town regularly for most of the 2000s. While he lived here, he had a solid local following and could pack clubs like Nighttown.

But back in January, he picked up and moved to Nashville where he now attends school at Belmont University. He continues to perform there as a solo artist and also plays in a bluegrass ensemble.

“I play as much music here as I can,” he says in a recent phone interview from his Nashville home.

“After graduating in May, I hope to go to Europe to play as many shows as I can. I’m studying music business, but I’m really an artist and creator. I

50

can take care of my own booking, but in a year or two I think that will switch over.”

Bankhurst started playing guitar when he was 11 years old; given that his dad played since he was 15 and his older brother started a few years before he did, that wasn’t a strange thing in his household. Inspired by the likes of George Benson, Wes Montgomery and Django Reinhardt, he delved into jazz as a teenager.

He went to Ohio State to study hospitality management and circulated at the Columbus clubs.

During that time, he heard Chet Atkins for the first time.

“There’s a famous video of him playing ‘Mr. Sandman,’” he explains.

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

DAN BANKHURST & FRIENDS 8:30 P.M. SATURDAY, DEC. 17, NIGHTTOWN, 12387 CEDAR RD., CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, 216-795-0550.

TICKETS: $20, NIGHTTOWNCLEVELAND.COM

at his Survival Kit Studios. A song like “Travis Train” features some twangy guitar work and includes a rather complex bridge that allows Bankhurst to show off his deft fingerstyle guitar abilities.

“I wanted to pay homage and take my hat off to some of the old players,” says Bankhurst when asked about the album. “So many of their

join me for acoustic songs and we’ll do an electric set. We’ll have some cool grooving stuff — a mix of blues, jazz and funk. I’ll do some bluegrass tunes too. Stylistically, it will be all over the place. It’ll be fun.”

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

| clevescene.com m | December 14 - 20, 2016

511

MUSIC HARDER HITTING Indie rockers Handsome Ghost expand their sound on new EP

By Jeff Niesel WHEN HANDSOME GHOST singer-guitarist Tim Noyes taught English classes for three years in a Bronx high school, he made sure he didn’t exploit the fact that he had a built-in audience for his folk tunes.

“I brought the guitar in once or twice,” says Noyes via phone from New York where his hip indie rock band was rehearsing for a short tour that includes a stop at the Beachland on Dec. 16. “I tried not to be the teacher with the guitar. I had a teacher when I was in high school who was always playing guitar, and I tried not to be that guy. I don’t think the students really knew that I was pretty serious about it. I still get notes from students who follow along on Facebook. They were nice about it. They were kind to me.”

A Boston native, Noyes says he was a “late bloomer” who picked up the guitar in high school but struggled to play it well.

“When I went to college, [guitar] finally made sense to me,” he says. “ I started writing as soon as I could play four chords. That would have been my freshman year of college. I was 18. It came natural and was more fun than learning covers.

Last year, Noyes released “Blood Stutter,” one of the band’s first demos, and the delicate, Death Cab for Cutieinspired indie rock tune that features falsetto vocals instantly racked up over 7 million streams on Spotify.

“That was the first one I wrote for this band,” Noyes says of “Blood Stutter.” “I wrote it before we were a band. It shaped our sound a little bit.

It’s about an old significant other. She was getting married, and it’s kind of like a don’t-get-married plea. It was a good one. I wrote it with the acoustic guitar and then on the laptop. It made me realize how much I wanted to shift direction and do this type of music moving forward. Lyrically, it’s really important too.”

And what was his reaction when it went viral?

“I was completely shocked,” he says.

“I had literally no expectation one way or another. When it started to creep up there on Spotify, I thought it would stop at some point. That was a huge surprise. It really got us started, and we realized we had something unique,

52

HANDSOME GHOST, YOKE LORE, POLARS 8 P.M. FRIDAY, DEC. 16, BEACHLAND TAVERN, 15711 WATERLOO RD., 216-383-1124.

TICKETS: $13 ADV, $15 DOS, BEACHLANDBALLROOM.COM

and people were connecting with it. I was working with a manager at the time, and we just put it out there. We did sign [to a record label] shortly thereafter. At first, it just took off on its own.”

Earlier this year, the band released its new EP The Brilliant Glow, a collection of shimmering indie pop tunes. It supported the album with a successful two-month tour as the main support for Melanie Martinez.

The album’s brisk opening track, “Graduate,” immediately sounds more upbeat and suggests the band has embraced a more vibrant mix of organic and electronic instrumentation.

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

“Yeah. I think sonically, we were trying to push it a little bigger and make it a little harder hitting,” Noyes says of the new EP. “It was the first time I worked with anyone collaboratively. It was a unique experience to open yourself up to critiques and new ideas. I sat down with a couple of different producers. I honestly wasn’t into it at first, but I’m really proud and the collaborations were helpful and pushed me to be better and take more risks. I’m really happy with how it came out. I don’t know what I want to do moving forward. I might want to strip things down.”

He says even “Graduate” still has a

“dark element.”

“I can’t help but write dark songs, no matter what,” he says. “But you can’t just write slow, sad songs forever.”

He says he wrote “Promises,” an anthem with cooing vocals, about his struggles to keep in touch with old friends in the wake of his success as an indie artist.

“That’s directed toward a lot of people,” he says of the tune. “I’m sure you can imagine to whom, but once this got started, I wasn’t doing a good job of keeping in touch and staying level. I got tunnel vision for the band and trying to grow this project and I let relationships slip.

[The song is] about reconnecting and remembering that I am a human being with responsibilities and relationships beyond touring and writing songs.

Those are important too. You can’t just give up on everyone who cares about you. I’m trying to be better. It’s my pledge. I am getting better — one step at a time.”

With its percolating synths and tender vocals, “Didn’t I Fade” works as a terrific album closer. Noyes says he always intended it to be a final song.

“I had written it long before those other songs,” he says. “I always wanted it to be the last song on something. I randomly listened to it about a month before we wrapped up the EP. I realized it had to go on it. It still resonates with me. I like the mood it sets, and I think it fits as the last song for sure.”

Given that Handsome Ghost has only released a pair of EPs, does Noyes think he’s capable of putting out a fulllength?

“We’re going to release our fulllength early next year,” he says. “I have the songs, and I feel really good about them. We’re exploring how to progress our sound in a way that is true to what we’re doing but also unique. There are so many bands in our world. It’s trial and error to find something that speaks to us.

The songs are written, and we’re on schedule. I always wanted to do a full-length. I feel it will be a huge step forward for us.”

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

53

LIVEWIRE

all the live music you should see this week Photo by Michelle Roche Media Relations

WED

12/14

10 X 3 Singer Songwriter Showcase: Hosted by Brent Kirby (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

Billy Coakley Christmas Drum Solo: 7:30 p.m., free. Brothers Lounge.

John Gibbon with HyunSoo Kim: 7 p.m., free. Bop Stop.

Kenny G: The Holiday Tour: 7:30 p.m. Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park.

The Main Squeeze/Essential Groove: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $14 DOS. Beachland Ballroom.

Thank You Scientist/Moon Tooth/The Tea Club/Sun Met the Moon/Jeff Klemm & the Letters: 6 p.m., $13 ADV, $16 DOS. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

THU

12/15

10,000 Maniacs: Although former lead singer Natalie Merchant hasn’t been with the 10,000 Maniacs in over 20 years, the band hasn’t missed a beat. It has continued touring and releasing music; its most recent release, Playing Favorites, features singer Mary Ramsey, who has been with the band off and on since 1993. She belts out classic tracks such as “What’s the Matter Here,” “Like the Weather” and “These Are the Days,” all songs that Merchant once sang. Ramsey capably fills Merchant’s shoes. (Brett Zelman) 7:30 p.m. Music Box Supper Club.

Dru Hill: The Sisqo-led hip-hop/soul group Dru Hill achieved success in the late ’90s and early 2000s with its self-titled album and the followup, Enter the Dru. Known for hits like “In My Bed” and “How Deep Is Your Love,” the Baltimore natives haven’t released an album since 2010 and haven’t played many shows since then either. But the group is playing four shows on its own, including tonight’s gig in Cleveland, before playing a few dates with other performers like the O’Jays and Brian McKnight. (Zelman) 8 p.m., $26 ADV, $31 DOS. House of Blues.

Tim Reynolds/Ray Flanagan: Tim Reynolds is most readily known for his Live at Luther College acoustic outing with comrade Dave Matthews. That double album was, and always will be, the staple of any good dorm room music collection.

Hell, we prize our copy here at Scene’s global headquarters.

54

10,000 Maniacs return to Music Box Supper Club. See: Thursday.

Reynolds still tours with DMB and gives up his acoustic guitar used on Luther College to playing more electric guitar.

After a three-night show in Mexico in February, Reynolds and Matthews will link up this spring for a 15-show tour of Europe, their first tour together in seven years. For tonight’s solo show, Reynolds will show off his dynamic acoustic guitar chops while playing his own songs and improvising. (Zelman) 8 p.m., $20. Beachland Ballroom.

Against the Current: In Our Bones World Tour with OTW/ Alcatel Idol 4/Cricket/Cruiser/ Beach Weather/The Sleeping Sounds: 7 p.m., $15. Grog Shop.

Nathan-Paul Davis and the People’s Choice/Axon-Neuron/ Essential Groove: 9 p.m., $5.

Happy Dog. Chris Hatton’s Musical Circus (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

Heart Attack Man/Secret Space/ Heart & Lung/The Grievance Club (in the Locker Room): 7 p.m., $10. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Jam Night with the Bad Boys of Blues: 9 p.m., free. Brothers Lounge.

King 810: 7 p.m., $15. Agora Ballroom.

NOVA/Moemaw Naedon/Joey Smooth (in Club Atlantis): 9 p.m., $5. Now That’s Class.

Aidan Plank: 8 p.m., $15. Bop Stop.

Adam Torres/Morgan Mecaskey/ James McKeivier: 8 p.m., $10.

Beachland Tavern.

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

FRI

12/16

Earthless/Ruby the Hatchet/ Relaxer: Jam bands pride themselves on the art of reaping endless crop from a single acre of land. But San Diego’s Earthless refuses to remain gravity bound. A potent combination of psychedelia and headbanging blues rock, the 15-year-old trio’s three studio albums consist of no more than four tracks each. But every song starts as a low rumble and builds to a powerful takeoff: Drums mark the pulse of beating wings while warbling guitars screech and scream from above. Earthless is venerated by many as the greatest modern psych rock experience. Imagine you’re traveling to the historic Fillmore Auditorium for this legendary performance at Cleveland’s own Grog Shop. (Bethany Kaufman) 9 p.m., $15 ADV, $17 DOS. Grog Shop.

Ohio City Singers: About 10 years ago, local singer-songwriter Chris Allen, his sister Molly, and Doug McKean worked up four Christmas tunes and then threw a big Christmas party to which they invited their musician friends. They played the four original tunes they had penned as well as a few choice covers, recorded them and delivered them on a CD to their families as a Christmas gift. That signaled the birth of the Ohio City Singers, a group of local musicians that plays several Christmas-themed concerts each year. This year, the group recaptures that house party vibe on its new CD, Ring Out the Wild Bells.

The songs veer from Springsteenlike anthems (“Ohio City Singer Christmas Bash”) to Zydeco-tinged rave-ups (“Coal Miser”) and reggaethemed reels (“Kingston via Cleveland”). (Jeff Niesel) 7 p.m., $18.

Vosh Club.

Affiance/Sentinents/Lower 13/Life Through Portraits/I Fight Fail/ Audience of Rain: 6:30 p.m., $12 ADV, $14 DOS. Agora Ballroom.

Tab Benoit/Kristine Jackson: 8 p.m., $30. Beachland Ballroom.

Handsome Ghost/Yoke Lore/Polars: 8 p.m., $13 ADV, $15 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

Glenn Holmes Quartet: 8 p.m., $12.

Bop Stop.

Sam Hooper: 9 p.m., $5. The Euclid Tavern.

How the Kishka Saved Christmas — A Very Special Edition of Polka Happy Hour: 6 p.m., free. Happy Dog. In Training: December Concupiscence with Titonton Duvante/Brian Cheng/Father of Two & ADAB: 9 p.m., $8. Now That’s Class.

Jazz Jam Session: 11 p.m., free. Bop Stop.

Kent Holiday Hip Hop Showcase with Alex Jackson/Saint Dank/ Young Fiend/Budders/Bschors/ Visual 9: 8 p.m., $5-$10. The Kent Stage.

Tracey Marie’s Third Friday Concert Series (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

Otis & the Shoreway Saints: 10 p.m., $5. Brothers Lounge.

Michael Stanley & the Resonators/ Donnie Iris: 8 p.m. Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park.

LIVEWIRE

SUN

Moss Stanley: 10:30 p.m., free.

Nighttown.

SAT

12/17

Ohio City Singers: 7 p.m., $18. Vosh Club.

Blues Deville (in the Supper Club): 8 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

The Christmas Krampus Ball 4: 9 p.m., free. Beachland Ballroom.

Clubhouse/Captain Kidd/Daily Drivers: 9 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Grog Shop.

Darkside of the Moon: 8 p.m., $12.50 ADV, $17 DOS. The Kent Stage.

EYE/Actual Form/Turbeaux: 9 p.m., $5. Happy Dog. The First Annual Toilet Tantrum: Festival of Nonsense with Mr. California/Robert Darkmatter/ Pariah’s Ilk/Fangface/ Neanderthal/Boaz Bair: 9 p.m., free. Now That’s Class.

A Grateful Grass Christmas with JP and the Chatfield Boys/Dead Ahead: 9 p.m., $8. Beachland Tavern.

A Killer’s Confession: 7 p.m., $12 ADV, $15 DOS. Agora Ballroom.

Late Show with Off The Grid: 11 p.m., $5. Bop Stop.

Light Years/Dead Fall/My Mouth is the Speaker/Up to Nothing/ Long Shot: 7 p.m., $5. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Bill March (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

Nasty Nati Brass Band: 8 p.m., $15.

Bop Stop.

The Oak Ridge Boys Christmas Show: 7:30 p.m., $32-$55. Akron Civic Theatre.

Songwriters’ Round with Tom Girard & Rick Szekelyi joined by Rebekah Jean & Jason Meyers: 3 p.m., free. Beachland Tavern.

The Spazmatics: 9:30 p.m., $5.

Brothers Lounge.

Michael Stanley & the Resonators/ Donnie Iris: 8 p.m. Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park.

TechN9ne: 7 p.m. Odeon.

Told Slant/Emily Reo/Sharpless (in the Locker Room): 7:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

Tropical Cleveland’s Annual Hot Latin Holiday Dance Party: 9:30 p.m. Music Box Supper Club.

Void Reunion: 9 p.m., $5. The Euclid Tavern.

Jackie Warren: 10:30 p.m., free.

Nighttown.

12/18

Cleveland Musical Theatre Presents Natalie Weiss: LIVE! (in the Supper Club): 7:30 p.m., $20 ADV, $25 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

Bob Frank with David Krauss: 8 p.m., $8. Beachland Tavern.

Funkyard X/Elegie: 8:30 p.m., $6.

Grog Shop.

Rob Hubbard Group: 8 p.m., $15. Bop Stop.

Marcus King Band: 8 p.m., $10 ADV, $15 DOS. The Kent Stage.

Mike Petrone: 5:30 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

The Wren Boys Festival 2016: 3 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.

MON

12/19

Skatch Anderssen Orchestra: 8 p.m., $7. Brothers Lounge.

Trapt/Alteras/Mossom/The Shadow Division/A Punche’s Pilot: 7 p.m., $15 ADV, $19 DOS. Agora Ballroom.

Velvet Voyage (in the Wine Bar): 8 p.m. Brothers Lounge.

TUE

12/20

Lupe Fiasco/RXMN/The Boy Illinois: When Chicago-based rapper Lupe Fiasco played House of Blues back in 2007, we previewed the show by saying his major label debut, Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor, “blends together the best parts of De La Soul, the Coup, and A Tribe Called Quest.” The guy certainly made a good first impression. Now, Fiasco returns to House of Blues in support of “Pick Up the Phone,” a poppy single that will be featured on one of the three new albums that he plans to release this year. Fiasco, who has worked with artists such as Kanye West, John Legend and Ed Sheeran, remains a hot commodity. (Niesel) 8 p.m., $26 ADV, $31 DOS. House of Blues.

ACO: Afro-Cleveland Orchestra: 9 p.m., $6. Grog Shop.

Broken Ornaments: A Holiday Concert Towards Destruktion: 8 p.m., $10. Bop Stop.

Swing City Big Band: 7:30 p.m., $10.

Vosh Club.

Two-Set Tuesday Featuring Jason Meyers (in the Wine Bar): 7 p.m.

Brothers Lounge.

A Very Chestertons Christmas with the Chestertons/Attack Cat/Zach Loomis/Britton Roberts: 8 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

55

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

SHADOW DIVISION

By Jeff Niesel MEET THE BAND: Michael Ridley (guitar), Max Espinosa (vocals, guitar), Kevin Hannah (drums) and Joe LaGuardia (bass) IMPORTED FROM THE U.K.: Initially, Ridley started the group after transferring from the U.K. to Cleveland a couple years ago.

The band existed in the U.K. but since Ridley owns the rights to the name, he decided to launch it in the States and used BandMix to recruit a new set of bandmates.

He first found Espinosa and then Hannah. The two clicked and said they were both in. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can tell theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re on the same page when you hear us jam,â&#x20AC;? says LaGuardia, who was one of nine bassists the band tried out. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was the only bassist who showed up for the audition with proper equipment and a knowledge of how to play the instrument,â&#x20AC;? says LaGuardia.

POUNDING IT OUT: The band cut the hard-driving single â&#x20AC;&#x153;Wake Upâ&#x20AC;? at the locally based Bad Racket Studios. For its new EP, it worked with local producers Jim Stewart and Michael Pappas. Stewart has helmed projects from many of Clevelandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best indie bands. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We wanted to see how weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d work together as a group, but you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to be like for an entire session,â&#x20AC;? says LaGuardia when asked about recording the four-song EP. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We wanted to pound it out. We did â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Wake Upâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; in three days. We did the EP in four days. We crammed a lot in there. We could spend the last day going through everything

and doing mixes and adding extra production. It was an experiment to see who we are as a band and see what each musician will bring to the table.â&#x20AC;?

WHY YOU SHOULD HEAR THEM: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve Got Some Resolutions,â&#x20AC;? the opening track on the new EP, features hushed vocals and cascading guitars as it alternates between moody, sparse segments and blasts of electric guitars. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When you listen to the songs coming out of us, you can tell they come from an eclectic group of people,â&#x20AC;? says LaGuardia. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I love â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90s alternative rock. I also listen to jazz and classical. I really like the Foo Fighters and Smashing Pumpkins. Michael is from the U.K, so he likes more of the New Wave and electronic music. Max is jazz-trained and Kevin loves hip-hop and soul and R&B. When you put all that in a room, all those influences come out. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s like putting those influences through a prism. And yet at the end of the day, we turn the amps up and love to get loud.â&#x20AC;? LaGuardia says band members have already started writing songs for the next EP. WHERE YOU CAN HEAR THEM: shadowdivision.com.

WHERE YOU CAN SEE THEM: Shadow Division performs with Trapt, Mossom and A Punchieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pilot at 7 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 19, at the Agora Ballroom.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

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| clevescene.com | December 14 - 20, 2016

SAVAGE LOVE SLOUCHING TOWARD 2017

by Dan Savage Dear Dan, Perhaps you’re not the best person to ask, being a cis white man, but as a queer woman of color, the election had an extremely detrimental effect on my relationships with my white partners. I love and care for them, but looking at those results has me wondering why the fuck they didn’t do better in reaching out to their shitty relatives? I’m sick of living at the whim of white America. I’m aware this is the blame stage of processing, but it’s left me unable to orgasm with my white partners. I’m really struggling with what Trump means for me and others who look like me. I know my queer white partners aren’t exempt from the ramifications of this, but I wish they had done better. Respond however you like.

— Devastated Over National Election First and most importantly, DONE, you don’t have to fuck anyone you don’t wanna fuck — period, the end, fin, full stop, terminus — but we owe it to ourselves to be thoughtful about who we’re fucking, who we aren’t, and why.

Data isn’t a turn-on for most people, DONE, and I’m not suggesting the data I’m about to cite obligates you to fuck anyone. But queer voters (a group that includes millions of people of color) didn’t just reject Trump, they did so by wider margins than some communities of color (groups that include millions of queers). While 14 percent of LGBT voters backed Trump, 28 percent of Latino voters and 19 percent of Asian American voters backed Trump. (Only 8 percent of African Americans voted for Trump.) The shitty and unfathomable votes of some POC — and some queers (WTF, 14 percenters?) — doesn’t get your white partners off the orgasmkilling hook. It’s possible your white queer partners didn’t do enough to persuade their families back in Clinton County, Iowa, to vote against hatred, fascism, racism, and Trump.

(Trump won Clinton County, Iowa,

by five depressing points.)

Like you, DONE, I’m struggling with what this election means. I’m not going to tell you what to do, or who to do, or how to process the election. I am going to tell you to talk with all your partners about your fears and your anger, and I encourage you to do whatever and whoever feels right going forward.

Dear Dan, If the GOP can send a huge prick like Donald J. Trump to the White House, why can’t we send our own pricks? My modest proposal: a coordinated effort to send thousands of dildos to Trump on January 21 — enough dildos to make news and get under his thin skin. This coordinated effort would be supplied and vetted by responsible, womenfriendly sex shops with a portion of the proceeds going to Planned Parenthood, LGBT charities, and the ACLU. — Donald Is Loathsomely, Disastrously Outrageous I like the way your mind works, DILDO, but your plan would result in good dildos going to waste.

So perhaps we should do a dildo version of the ice-bucket-challenge thing instead? You gift a dildo to someone through a cooperating, woman-friendly, progressive sextoy shop, and that person gifts a dildo to someone else, and so on.

A portion of the proceeds for each gifted dildo goes to groups fighting Trump’s agenda and a card gets sent to Trump letting him know a dildo was gifted to a deserving orifice in his name and a worthy organization benefited. Nearly 100,000 people have made donations to Planned Parenthood in Mike Pence’s name since the election, and that’s made news. This could too, DILDO. If someone wants to run with this idea, I’ve purchased the URL marchofdildos.com. Get in touch, show me your plan, and I’ll gift the URL to you.

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