Feb 22-28, 2011

Feb 22-28, 2011 / Vol. 24 / No. 52

A classic never fails

In the times when you don’t remember if the snakeskin printed clutch or the neon colors are in — just grab the bag that will never let you down.

Jennifer Malone

Best bets in Charlotte comedy this week, Feb. 28-March 6

As the headline suggests, here are a few of the best places to find comedy events in Charlotte — from stand-up to improv to sketch comedy and more. For a complete listing of all comedy visit www.CharlotteComedyLIVE.com. Monday, Feb. 28 Hideaway Open Mic at 8 p.m. Join us for stand-up open mic.  Sign-up for five…

Anita Overcash

Viral anti-Islam rant ‘blames’ Obama for Bush ‘Muslim stamp’

Like many people, I have relatives who forward chain e-mails. Thanks to a couple of cousins I really like but rarely see, I can keep up with a slew of cool nature videos, “you won’t believe this” photographs and goofy games, along with the occasional FoxNews-ish political rants. Yesterday I received one of the “Foxy”…

John Grooms

Broadway and Off-Broadway, 2011

Whether you’re interested in catching an early peep at the blockbusters headed toward the Charlotte’s PAC in future seasons, or you’re curious about the edgier fare that our smaller homegrown companies are drooling over, the places to go are Broadway and off-Broadway. That’s where the Queen City’s deciders sneak off to as they fashion their…

Perry Tannenbaum

March 1: Beer dinner at East Boulevard Bar & Grill

East Boulevard Bar & Grill is hosting a four-course beer dinner at 6 pm on Tuesday, March 1, to benefit National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The cost is $40 per person. First course: Barbecued Popcorn Shrimp over a stone ground grit cake with crisp sweet onions. Paired with Bell’s Two-Hearted Ale. Second course: Lemon Chicken Velouté…

Priscilla Tsai

Thomas Keller’s Simple Roast Chicken

This roast chicken recipe is the easiest thing I’ve probably ever made, and it’s probably one of the tastiest dinners to have ever come out of my oven. Thomas Keller of the famous restaurant French Laundry in Yountville, CA choses his own roast chicken to be included as part of his “last meal” in the…

Priscilla Tsai

Free waffle fries at Chick-Fil-A

Chick-fil-A and Heinz want to know: Do you dip or do you squeeze? … your ketchup, that is. In celebration of Heinz’s new “Dip & Squeeze” ketchup packaging, which allows people to either dip into it or squeeze it out, the two companies are partnering together to create a national FREE FryDay on Friday, March…

Priscilla Tsai

Concert announcement: Phish

Phish will return to the Queen City this summer. They’ve announced a June 17 date at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre on the band’s Web site. A limited number of tickets for the lawn ($45) and general admission pit and reserved seating ($60) are now available through the band’s site, as well. No word on when the…

Jeff Hahne

CIAA commercial: The Sol Kitchen and friends

I have to say, as I’ve been compiling CL’s big ass list of parties for CIAA 201, I’ve been incredibly overwhelmed. How do you choose which places to hit up out of the 200+ events going on in a four-day period? Well, I’ll be honest: I don’t have the answer. But I have been stumbling…

Kimberly Lawson

Drive Angry trailer

Nicolas Cage plays a vengeful father who escapes from hell and chases after the men who killed his daughter. Opens this Friday, Feb. 25.

Laura Camilo

Today’s Top 5: Wednesday

Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Feb. 23, 2011 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing. • Once Upon a Mattress at Winthrop University • The Malah at Double Door Inn • Open Mic at Jackalope Jacks • North to South exhibit at Green…

Anita Overcash

Concert announcement: The Whigs

The Whigs are returning to Charlotte on April 14. They’ll perform at the Neighborhood Theatre. Tickets go on sale on Feb. 25 at 11 a.m. They are $14 in advance and $16 day of show.

Jeff Hahne

Hall Pass trailer

This Farrelly Brothers comedy tests the supposed pros of being single for a group of married male friends. Opens this Friday, Feb. 25.

Laura Camilo

Upcoming: Smashbox National Makeup Event at Nordstrom

Want to learn how to master the smokey eyed look — and have it last all night long? Or how about how to use a makeup brush to sculpt some supermodel cheekbones? Well, here’s your chance to learn all that and more. Smashbox’s National Artistry Team will be at Nordstrom at Southpark Mall this Thursday…

Kimberly Lawson

SPECIAL EVENT: Charlotte Speed Demons

The action of watching speedy gals wheel around, as they bump their rivals straight outta the way is pretty entertaining. This Saturday, you can see for yourself, as The Charlotte Speed Demons kick off its 2011 roller derby season with a bout against Columbia’s Bad Co. at the First Ward Recreation Center. $8-$14. 6 p.m.…

Anita Overcash

Roll with it: Akahana

Itamae Landon Nguyen glances over to the maki rolls his busy team is assembling. He murmurs to someone and instantly the salmon is replaced with a more precisely cut strip. A slight smile appears on the Itamae’s face as he keeps his head down focusing on his own order. As guests finish, he asks each…

Tricia Childress

COMEDY: Rory Scovel

New York-based comedian Rory Scovel is a hoot. In his act, he presents a plethora of absurdity that can be found in everyday life situations. You may have seen his stand-up on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, but in case you haven’t, take my word for it: He’ll make…

Anita Overcash

3 questions with Dawn Beltrami of The Hippie Kitchen

Dawn Beltrami grew up on an organic hippie farm in Oregon before eventually making her way to Charlotte. She is the owner of The Hippie Kitchen, a privately owned company which distributes organic, diabetic and gluten-free products to private clients as well as local Davidson farmers markets. She started The Hippie Kitchen in 2007 after…

Nicole Pietrantonio

MUSIC: Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons

You’re a legend when your tickets are in such high demand you add an extra night to accommodate your fans; which is what Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons did for Charlotte. With an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall Fame and the Broadway play Jersey Boys, loosely based on the lives of he…

Cyber bullying continues despite tragedies

In case you didn’t get the memo, cyber bullying in any form is unacceptable. Not only is it immoral, but it is also illegal. In spite of the high-profile cases of teens taking their lives after being victims of cyber bullying, every other week, a case surfaces where a young person is being bullied online…

Nsenga Burton

EXHIBITS: Undergraduate Juried Exhibition & RubberMADE

Winthrop University galleries are currently showcasing two new exhibits. The 23rd Annual Undergraduate Juried Exhibition features student/artist works, such as paintings, drawings, sculptures, jewelry, photography and more. And RubberMADE (see pictured image from the exhibit) contains a collection of objects — described as “both interactive and wearable” — by Courtney Starrett. Exhibits continue through March…

Anita Overcash

EXHIBIT: Images Captured and Shared

Time is running out for you to see Mint Hill Arts’ photography exhibit — showcasing many forms of photography, including conventional imagery, computer-generated/enhanced artwork and Polaroid snapshots (see a pictured sample: “Watching Over Ulm,” by David Gaertner) — which ends tomorrow. Visit now, before it’s too late. Free admission. Mint Hill Arts, 7714 Matthews-Mint Hill…

Anita Overcash

CL previews upcoming concerts (FEB. 23-MARCH 1)

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 23 THE MALAH This S.C. trio’s electronica makes for spacey driving music on starlit nights. It’s not all chill-out music, though; there’s a dance undercurrent in some of their compositions. The atmospheric instrumentals are tempered with grooves and earthy tones. Judging from their pics and videos, their visuals aren’t too shabby, either. $7.…

Jennifer Blood, Mighty Samson, among new comic reviews

As always, I’ve been reading a gaggle of comic books all week. Here’s a look at some of the stuff I liked and some the stuff I didn’t: Jennifer Blood No. 1: The concept behind the new series Jennifer Blood — a housewife by day and bloodthirsty vigilante by night — is a cool one.…

Carlton Hargro

Why we still need Black History Month

Five years ago, I wrote a column about a couple of young white guys I overheard in a bookstore as they smugly griped about Black History Month. One of the guys summed up their complaints this way: “I mean, slavery was banned, people! What else have they had to gripe about?” Other guy: “No shit…

Theater review: Blue Door

Back in the days of JazzCharlotte, I asked the great folksinger Odetta a few weeks before she arrived in town whether she was going to perform any of the work songs, such as “Water Boy” or “No More Cane on the Brazos,” that her reputation was built upon. The answer was an emphatic no: She…

Perry Tannenbaum

The railroading of Michael Peterson

If they ran the justice system in Uganda like this, the United Nations would send watchdogs in to document the human rights abuses. In retrospect, the 2003 trial and conviction of Durham novelist Michael Peterson was more like something you’d expect out of a tin-pot dictatorship in some far-flung hellhole. Then again, this is the…

Bizarre crimes from Charlotte police files

Classic Case: Employees at a local Lowe’s Foods called police after catching a young man attempting to shoplift from the store. The man was caught trying to walk out of the store with a pack of Sour Patch Kids, a pack of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and a bottle of Sprite. When he was searched…

Ryan Pitkin

The last days of Delvonte Tisdale

Just after 9:30 p.m. on Nov. 15, 2010, in the Boston suburb Milton, Mass., a driver was headed down a dark residential street … until he noticed something large blocking his path. Inching closer, the driver discovered that what was blocking the road was the severely mutilated body of a deceased young black male —…

Cheris Hodges

Rock Hill’s rocky past

  In February 2011, it’s a new and exciting era in Rock Hill and York County — one open with all sorts of possibilities and opportunities. And while things aren’t perfect, they could be much worse. Flash back, for example, 50 years ago to that day in early 1961 when 10 young African-Americans (nine of…

Larry Timbs

Weekly horoscope (Feb. 23-March 1)

Pisces The Fish (Feb. 19-March 19) Take every precaution not to abuse your body during this period. Drugs or alcohol could have peculiar side effects that you don’t expect. You are in a low physical cycle and will be unable to push yourself as hard as normal on any physical task. If you are feeling…

Vivian Carol

That 1 Guy takes ‘one man band’ to a new level

A big part of putting your stamp on the national music landscape is in creating something unique, that makes you stand out from the pack. Some people do that through their image, their voice or simply through their music. That 1 Guy has made his mark with those, but it’s also his instrument that makes…

Jeff Hahne

Capsule reviews of films playing the week of Feb. 23

ANOTHER YEAR A character in a 70s movie — Gene Hackman’s private eye in Night Moves, if we’re pointing fingers — opined that watching an Eric Rohmer film is like watching paint dry. I imagine similar charges have been lobbed against the oeuvre of British writer-director Mike Leigh, whose idea of an action sequence is…

Matt Brunson

CD REVIEW: G. Love’s Fixin’ To Die

THE DEAL: G. Love gets some help from The Avett Brothers — musically and for production — on latest album. THE GOOD: This is a different side of G. Love than some people might be familiar with. He’s stripped off the funky vibes and gone for something more stripped down, acoustic and straight-forward. Scott and…

Jeff Hahne

CD REVIEW: Aurelio’s Laru Beya

THE DEAL: From the opening strain of song No. 1, “Lubara Wanwa”, you know this is gonna be good. It grabs you immediately and lasts throughout. This is Garifuna music from the coast of Honduras in Central America. Don’t be turned off by the language or culture because the music, the emotion and the soul…

Lew Herman

Oscar show won’t be left Speech-less

What looked like a slam dunk for one picture throughout most of the awards season on a dime turned into a slam dunk for another movie. Yes, The Social Network may initially have had all the Oscar buzz, but lately, it’s been all about The King’s Speech. Will this momentum carry the British period tale…

Matt Brunson

Obama’s budget: Freezing the poor

President Barack Obama unleashed his proposed 2012 budget this week, pronouncing, proudly: “I’ve called for a freeze on annual domestic spending over the next five years. This freeze would cut the deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade, bringing this kind of spending — domestic discretionary spending — to its lowest share…

Amy Goodman

Unknown: Neeson Maxima

I don’t mind that Unknown, which builds on Liam Neeson’s newly minted status as a tortured action hero, is utterly ridiculous. Why? Because within the constraints of its absurdity, it always manages to play fair with the audience. This is a radical departure from many contemporary thrillers in which the filmmakers are so focused on…

Matt Brunson

FILM: Arsenic and Old Lace

Just when you think your family is messed up, comes a film that will change your mind. The Light Factory’s “Family Portraits” Reperatory Film Series will screen Arsenic and Old Lace. The 1944 film — directed by Frank Capra and based on the play by Joseph Kesselring — stars Cary Grant as Mortimer Brewster, a…

Anita Overcash

Barney’s Version worth hearing

Paul Giamatti’s excellent performance in Barney’s Version recently earned him the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy, and he certainly deserved the honor over embarrassingly weak competition. What isn’t so clear, however, is why this film was thrust into the Comedy category in the first place. Certainly, this adaptation of Mordecai…

Matt Brunson

NIGHTLIFE: Where’s Waldo Bar Crawl

Red and white stripes are mandatory during the upcoming Where’s Waldo Bar Crawl at EpiCentre. In an attempt to break the Guinness World Record for “the most people dressed as Waldo in one place,” comes this event, including free entry to any venue at the EpiCentre all night long. Just be sure not to get…

Anita Overcash

Where to find it: The Other Menu at 88 China Bistro

One of the most common questions I am asked is where to find “authentic” Chinese food in Charlotte. For a long time, I have told readers that Chinese restaurants frequently have two menus. The other “secret” menu is the one given to Chinese ex-pats and those who like quality, even expensive, Chinese cuisine. But you…

Tricia Childress

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