Hundreds celebrated the Beachland Ballroom’s tenth anniversary, this past weekend, with Pere Ubu and Roky Erickson, followed on Sunday with a new brunch menu from the fabulous mind of chef Jeremy Cobb. WRUW's DJ Katherine from Maximum Consumption provided tunes.

To read about the show, go online at www.collinwoodobserver.com, and scroll down the front page to "Beachland Ballroom"

 

Hundreds celebrated the Beachland Ballroom’s tenth anniversary, this past weekend, with Pere Ubu and Roky Erickson. Here are the highlights:

Pere Ubu: The God Daddies of Avant Garage
David Thomas  took the stage dressed as neutral as his attitude and wore a coat as long as his moustached face. The term avant-garage was actually coined by the frontman himself (not to be confused with the deceased Wendy's Restaurants entrepreneur) so that journalists could pigeon-hole their sound. Pere Ubu is also often described as post punk, experimental, and proto new wave. In 1974 Mr. Thomas was the vocalist of a group called "Rocket From the Tombs."  In  1975, Thomas left Rocket From the Tombs with guitarist Peter Laughner to form Pere Ubu which left Johnny Blitz and Cheetah Chrome to join Stiv Bators, forming the infamous punk outfit the Dead Boys. Hailing from right here in our rust belt city, Pere Ubu birthed their first creative child, "The Modern Dance" in 1978 and performed every molecule of it on the Ballroom stage over 30 years later for a special Anniversary show on March 5th. This night in Cleveland, you looked around and forgot THIS many people lived in the city limits. There was no generation gap, which really gives you a strong idea of how influential this band really was and still is.

Don’t miss your chance to witness the Spring musical performances of one of Northeast Ohio’s hardest-working children’s theater companies, UpStage Players. From March 26th through March 28th, the group will be producing and performing Aladdin, Jr., where many all-time favorite characters come to life in this stage adaptation of the Disney hit.

UpStage Players’ opening performance will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, March 26th at the Slovenian Workmen’s Home (15335 Waterloo Road; Cleveland), their permanent performance residence. The group’s second show will commence on Saturday, March 27th, also at 7:30 p.m. Their final performance of the Spring will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 28th.

For the last eleven years there has been a movement afoot. It was founded with a simple mission: “ Never hide your talent," and was taking place annually in recreation centers, co-op storefronts, and  Community galleries across the nation. This year, The National Arts Program (nationalartsprogram.org) will hold The City of Cleveland exhibit at the Arts Collinwood Gallery, March 29 – April 9, 2010, with a grand opening reception Thursday, April 1 from 6 –9pm. The exhibition is free and open to the public. Participants must be employees of the City of Cleveland, a family member of an employee, or a City of Cleveland resident. Proof of residency is required to enter the exhibition.

Don’t miss your chance to witness the Spring musical performances of one of Northeast Ohio’s hardest-working children’s theater companies, UpStage Players. From March 26th through March 28th, the group will be producing and performing Aladdin, Jr., where many all-time favorite characters come to life in this stage adaptation of the Disney hit.

UpStage Players’ opening performance will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, March 26th at the Slovenian Workmen’s Home (15335 Waterloo Road; Cleveland), their permanent performance residence. The group’s second show will commence on Saturday, March 27th, also at 7:30 p.m. Their final performance of the Spring will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 28th.

The name of the movie I saw is God’s Gift (2006), written by Britt O. Wynn.  It was based on a boxing film and Romeo's struggle with God and also his struggle with his father's problem.  This movie was a drama film, because it involved many situations of love and heartbreak.  The characters in this film were Master P and Lil Romeo.  The setting was in Los Angeles.

"We try to teach the principles of design and other visual elements," says Alexis Hedderson, who teaches Thursday afternoon  classes for elementary-school-age children at ArtsCollinwood. "The children do what they want to do." According to Hedderson, the program is  "choice-based"  and  "allows kids to be their own artist." The classes cover drawing, painting, collage, printmaking and working with clay. Miss Hedderson has an Early Childhood Education degree from Ursuline College and has taken art classes at Cleveland State University.

When many outsiders think of Collinwood they think of it as the setting for the 2002 movie Welcome to Collinwood, starring George Clooney. One resident sees it differently. Dustin Nowlin, a resident of the area since the age of 15, thinks the area is a breeding ground for young artists. He enjoys walking through the neighborhood with his dog Cabbie.

“Collinwood is ripe for new blood,” Nowlin said. “There needs to be more young artists.”

Nowlin, along with two other artists, plan to show off some of their talent with an exhibition called A War Within Our Hearts opening March 12, 2010 at the Doubting Thomas gallery on 856 Jefferson Ave in Tremont. During the opening night, 6-10 PM, there will be merchandise, as well as food and refreshments, available.

If you ask most Cleveland Municipal School District students if they have ever been to the Cleveland Museum of Art, chances are the answer would be no. Regrettably, a visit to this jewel in the University Circle cultural crown has become unattainable because field trips are so costly. However, guided tours for groups of fifteen or more are available on a first come, first serve basis and teachers can apply at the CMA Education Department section at www.clevelandart.com. Fortunately, before Christmas break I was able to take five Collinwood High School students on a tour of the newly renovated galleries of CMA, which is ranked as one of America’s top five art museums. Their enthusiasm was a delight to witness. Here are some of their comments:

Arts Collinwood is proud to be sponsoring The Portfolio Project, a collaboration between teenagers and senior citizens, and is now accepting student nominations from teachers and others familiar with student work.

This project is a unique intergenerational experience in which a small group of high school students work with senior citizens to create poetry, oral history, video, still photography and portraiture. The sessions will be led by artists pre-eminent in their fields, who will also teach the young artists how to develop a portfolio, curate an exhibit and participate in the jurying process -- by helping to select a finalist for a mural installation at the Arts Collinwood center. 

A CALL TO ARTISTS

The All-City Art Show, sponsored by the National Arts Program, will be held at the Arts Collinwood gallery March 26 to April 9, with an official opening reception on April 1. Submissions are due by March 22. The exhibit is judged by professional artists and art educators in Amateur, Intermediate, Professional and Youth classifications. Entry is free. Participants must live in or work for the city of Cleveland, or belong to a city employee’s family. All entries must be the artist’s own original work (no kits!). There’s $1800 of prize money for the nine adult classes; $600 for the eight under-eighteen classes; and the possibility of an Honorable Mention, besides a Certificate of Participation for all entrants. For information and registration forms call: 216-664-2562, or visit www.nationalartsprogram.org.

Just before receiving my Bachelor of Fine Art degree from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 1989 as a drawing major, I was introduced to enameling. In my 4th year, a friend showed me pieces of copper she had covered with some sort of colorful, durable coating. She explained that it was enamel, and briefly told me about the class and the process. I’d never heard of this, but was very intrigued and so enrolled in the class at the start of my 5th and final year at CIA, to learn some of the basics of the medium.

Visual artist Terry Durst, who taught at the Cleveland Institute of Art and Cuyahoga Community College, moved to South Collinwood from Tremont four years ago. The move got him closer to the Waterloo Arts District and to the Beachland Ballroom and Tavern, where he loves to see music, mostly country music or anyone that sounds like Neil Young. When he lived in Tremont, his friends knew to look up his home phone number by searching for Neil Young in the phone book, that's how much Durst believes and associates with the power of music.

Arts Collinwood ended 2009 on a high note. For the first time ever, we faced an incredibly generous $5,000 challenge grant -- and thanks to tremendous response from members, neighbors and supporters, successfully raised the funds to make the match. The Weekends on Waterloo Holiday Sale at Arts Collinwood Gallery was up 20% from 2008 -- thanks for shopping locally! We received significant funding from the Cleveland Foundation. And, in spite of a really tough economy, we made it through the year, and didn't cut any of our core programs, including operating our new arts center.The year ahead looks promising: we've reopened the Cafe at Arts Collinwood, with a new look, new art, new menu, new music and more. Check out the jazz nights, movie nights, and much more -- another great way to showcase local artistic talent, while supporting the arts. 

Breathtaking...stunning...unbelievable! No words can describe the beauty of "Avatar" because this movie is in a league of its own, with its wondrous special effects and sensitive script.