Scene March 4, 2020

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CONTENTS -!2#( s 6/, .O 36

Upfront .......................................5 Feature ..................................... 11 Get Out! .................................... 17 Stage ........................................ 22 Dedicated to Free Times founder Richard H. Siegel (1935-1993) and Scene founder Richard Kabat Publisher Andrew Zelman Editor Vince Grzegorek Editorial Music Editor Jeff Niesel Senior Writer Sam Allard Staff Writer Brett Zelman Web Editor Laura Morrison Dining Editor Douglas Trattner Visual Arts Writer Dott von Schneider Stage Editor Christine Howey Copy Editor Elaine Cicora Interns Claudia Ugbana Advertising Senior Multimedia Account Executive John Crobar, Shayne Rose Creative Services Art Director/Production Manager Steve Miluch Staff Photographer Emanuel Wallace Business

Film ......................................... 23 Eat ............................................ 25 Music ........................................28 Savage Love .............................. 41

REWIND: 1974

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Forty-six years ago this week, Scene interviewed cover star Stephen Stills. Check out the trip in the Rewind machine on page 38.

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UPFRONT WITH LEASE EXPIRING AND SIN TAX FUNDS DRY, GATEWAY SEEKS STATE MONEY TO HELP FUND RENOVATIONS TO PROGRESSIVE FIELD THE PUBLIC MUST NEVER forget or let local elected leaders forget: The Q Deal was one of the ugliest and most dispiriting episodes in recent Cleveland history. With shocking clarity over multiple months, it demonstrated the lengths to which elected leaders would go to crush the will of the electorate at the behest of their private masters. For the privilege of mortgaging their constituents’ future, leaders ultimately sabotaged the most energizing grassroots coalition Cleveland had seen in decades. The public was of course under zero obligation to pay a cent for upgrades at the Q, which owner Dan Gilbert had decided were urgently required to improve upon the arena’s global ranking in events per year and to land yet more significant events (aka, a future NBA All-Star game). This was mere months after the NBA Championship and the RNC in 2016. County executive Armond Budish, Cleveland mayor Frank Jackson and city council president Kevin Kelley bent over so far backwards to ratify the outrageous handout, despite overwhelming public opposition, that the Browns and the Indians couldn’t help but get the message: A precedent was being set. The floodgates were opening wider still. Not only does the public do these teams the biggest favor of all by “owning” the facilities in which they play — a farce sold to the public as a benefit, but which actually just allows the teams to avoid paying property taxes on the buildings they inhabit, control, and vastly profit off of — the public is also responsible for all large capital expenditures and major repairs ($500,000+) at the facilities, per their lease agreements. These repairs and upgrades are paid for with Sin Tax dollars, though that well is virtually dry. In fact, the county borrowed $60 million in bonds as an advance on future Sin Tax revenue to pay for projects from 2015-2017. About $7 million per year now goes toward paying down

Photo by Erik Drost-FlickrCC

principal and interest on those bonds alone. The public is also still paying off cost overruns on the construction of the basketball arena from back in the early ’90s (and will be until 2023). Long before that debt was paid off, leaders saw fit to encumber the public with a whole lot more. Various public revenue streams will be paying down Q Deal bonds from 2023 until 2034, downgrading the county’s bond rating in the process in light of the vertiginous load. The repayment projections also included admissions tax revenue from Cavs’ playoff games from 2017-2023 — a, shall we say, dicey revenue stream. There’s no question that Armond Budish will go down in history as one of the worst politicians in the region’s resplendent history of cowards, crooks and sycophants. And as he’s dealt with calamities at the county jail and non-stop personnel scandals, he has continued to celebrate the Q Deal as one of the few bright spots of his ghastly tenure. Cleveland.com editor Chris Quinn does as well. Budish’s pride in

the Q Deal is, by now, a very sad joke indeed. But in 2018, as he was running for the term which would promptly reveal the terrifying scale of his ineptitude, Budish praised the Q Deal yet again, misrepresenting the financial arrangement to portray it as a sound investment for the region. He even suggested that it was the kind of deal that the county [would] look to make with the Indians. Well, the moment has come. With the Q Deal in the rearview, the county, alongside Gateway Development Corp., is now hunting for public subsidies to help pay for future renovations at Progressive Field, which the Indians can be counted upon to demand as part of negotiations when their lease expires in 2023. The Cavs got $70 million (what will amount to $160 million or more with interest payments) for a measly seven-year lease extension, the Indians might remember. We should get the same deal! WKYC’s Mark Naymik reported that Gateway’s board chairman Ken Silliman approached JobsOhio for

help — and was turned down — and had not ruled out the possibility of requesting an allocation from the state of Ohio’s two-year capital budget. It’s still early. Who knows what elaborate levers our distinguished electeds and their advisers will attempt to pull in order to pay the Dolans their ransom. Equally unclear is what sorts of renovations will even be considered. The Indians have already used Sin Tax dollars for discretionary renovations — Scoreboard! Suites! — and have requested millions more to redo the stadium’s seating and buy new food service equipment. Additional money is already being set aside in a special reserve that was created as part of the Q Deal, but — as we can see from Silliman’s recent efforts — leaders must know that the available supply won’t be enough to sate the appetite of the Indians, who just saw the Cavs get bushels of free money and no doubt want a roughly equivalent slice of the pie. This is the same sort of corporate | clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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UPFRONT welfare that Cleveland residents have witnessed, with increasing dismay and disgust, for decades. As the majority of Cleveland’s adults can’t read and the majority of Cleveland’s children live in poverty, watching millions of dollars being handed to sports owners for facilities used predominantly by suburban and exurban fans, with literally no questions asked, is disgraceful. Most troubling of all, sports teams — which are corporations — are taking cues from their brethren, the likes of Amazon and Sherwin-Williams. They recognize that by dangling the possibility of a departure, they can squeeze public entities dry much more regularly (at least every time a lease is up for renewal!) and then get celebrated for staying put: what they almost always would have done anyway. This hostage dynamic is especially acute in Cleveland, where leaders have a ready supply of catchphrases and scare words about the Browns’ departure in ’95 that have successfully reduced the public to obedience and fear.

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As an additional note of irony in the current situation, Indians coowner and CEO Paul Dolan happens to be the board chairman of the United Way of Greater Cleveland, an organization making bold pronouncements about its laserfocused commitment to poverty. In an interview on WCPN last Thursday, United Way’s president and CEO Augie Napoli suggested, correctly, that advocating for policy solutions was more effective than writing a check when it came to making a dent in poverty. One of the most straightforward policies that he might consider lobbying against is the one where we use vast quantities of public money — which might otherwise have gone to infrastructure, public safety, health and human services or anything else that might elevate the quality of life for Cleveland’s poor and vulnerable — to fund stadiums for billionaire owners. — Sam Allard

Cleveland.com Ends Reader Comments on Stories As of last Thursday, Cleveland. com no longer accepts reader comments on stories. Citing the generally vile and

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

mean-spirited nature of the comment sections, as well as the fact that a small percentage of readers were responsible for the vast majority of comments, Cleveland.com editor Chris Quinn wrote of the decision: “In cleveland.com’s 20-plus year history, comments have been our biggest flashpoint. Screening comments for personal attacks, profanity or off-topic remarks has become an increasing drain on newsroom resources. Despite the invested time, money and effort, we have failed to dampen pervasive meanness. It’s such a shame. We genuinely wanted the platform to work, because people have so few places to meet others with different viewpoints who want to discuss the topics we cover.” Cleveland.com had previously closed commenting on individual crime and court stories, venues where comments inevitably devolved into digital distillations of racism, and instead offered a single daily comment section for all crime and court stories in an effort to stem the tide. Rare is the comment section that lives up to the Socratic ideals of engagement and debate that media organizations had once envisioned. Almost exclusively, they are instead

cesspools of hate, harassment, trolling, racism and bigotry. Moderating those online petri dishes is imperfect, time-consuming and expensive. Even with automated methods, which pull or quarantine comments based on keywords, there still exists a need for humans to mine through the shit to flag vile comments that make it through the safety net. And even with those explicitly hateful submissions excised, the general hateful spirit remains, driven in large part by that small minority responsible for the vast majority of comments. “We have more than 7.5 million devices connecting to our site in an average month, but just over 4,000 left a comment,” Quinn wrote today. “That works out to a tiny bit more than one tenth of one half of one percent. Across all 11 Advance Local websites — which serve 50 million visitors in an average month — just 2,340 people produce more than half of the comments.” The move, which is sure to be met with universal applause in the newsroom at 1801 Superior Avenue and others around the country, is one that sister outlets owned by Advance Publications have either already made or will in the future. “Not hosting a place where a

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UPFRONT MARCH 20-22 CLEVELAND’S I-X CENTER

tiny number of people spew caustic nonsense is our latest step to make for a better Greater Cleveland community,” Quinn wrote. — Vince Grzegorek

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Northern Ohio Has Five of Country’s 100 Worst Polluting Industrial Facilities The Cleveland-based United Church of Christ last week released a report, and a suite of corresponding materials, about the 100 worst polluting industrial facilities in the United States. Ohio is home to eight of the so-called “Toxic 100,” with five facilities bordering Lake Erie and one in Cuyahoga County.

DIGIT WIDGET $595 MILLION Cleveland Hopkins Airport debt as of 2019, down 27 percent in the past fi ve years and down from $ 986 million in 2003, according to the Plain Dealer.

38 PERCENT Decrease in Hopkins’ airline fees over the past fi ve years, with current enplanement cost averaging $13.26 last year. (Each airline pays a different rate, with United paying the most since it’s still paying off the $75 million in debt from Concourse D.)

2018

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The first year in a long time that revenue collected by Hopkins from parking, restaurants, cargo fees, etc. outpaced revenue collected from the airlines. Airport officials say it’s important because the lower the fees charged to the airlines, the more routes airlines will bring through Cleveland.

$1 BILLION Projected cost of a new or majorly renovated terminal, which will likely be in the offing soon. A consultant has been hired to map the airport’s master plan. Bonds would be taken out by Hopkins and paid back by the airlines.

UCC ministers, alongside researchers at the Environmental Integrity Project and allies in the environmental justice movement, unveiled the report at a press conference in Washington, D.C. last week. Its title, “Breath to the People: Sacred Air and Toxic Pollution,” is a reference to the biblical book of Isaiah and is intended to draw attention to the plight of people living in close proximity to these facilities, which are responsible for nearly 40 percent of all toxic emissions in the country. “It is not an accident that we are releasing this report on Ash Wednesday, a day associated with repentance,” said the Rev. Brooks Berndt, UCC minister for environmental justice. “In its Greek origins, repentance was about turning around and changing course to go in a better direction. As a nation, it is time for us to go in a better direction for the sake of our children and communities across the country.” Of the five northern Ohio facilities, Lorain County’s BASF chemical facility ranks worst overall (11 out of 100), based on toxic air emission data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. For the study, researchers at the Environmental Integrity Project assigned greater weight to pollutants that are more toxic when inhaled. In their analysis, researchers also recorded the number of total residents living within a mile of the facilities, the number of children and seniors, and the percentage of people of color and low-income residents. Cuyahoga County’s MPC Plating Inc. facility on East 63rd ranks 68 out of 100 facilities overall, but is highest in Ohio in the concentration of people of color living nearby. Nearly 91 percent of residents within a mile of the Hough facility are people of color and more than 70 percent are low-income. Lake County’s Bescast Inc. facility (#49), Sandusky’s Whirlpool facility (#55) and Ashtabula’s Ineos Pigments USA facility (#71) round out the list of northern Ohio super polluters. The report notes that the industrialized southeast coast of Lake Erie is a hotbed for toxic emissions, with 185 facilities that released 61.8 million tons of toxicityweighted air pollution in 2018. — Allard

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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FEATURE

By Eliese Colette Goldbach

From Rust by Eliese Colette Goldbach, out today and for sale wherever you find your books. Copyright © 2020 by the author and reprinted by permission of Flatiron Books.

TEEL IS THE ONLY THING that shines in the belly of the mill. The walkways, which were once the color of jade, have dulled to a sickly, ashen green. The cranes, once yellow, have browned with grime. Dust settles on Ȅ ϐ ǡ forklifts and lunches, on train cars and coat jackets. Even the workers, who lumber through their long shifts, seem to be collecting dust. I am one such worker. To the company, I’m known as #6691: Utility Worker. 6691 is a number given to new hires. Greenies. Fresh Ǥ ϐ the mill, one of the older employees congratulated me. “You won the lottery,” he said. “You’re gonna make a lot of money.” The man paused. He thought for a moment. He let out a long tapered breath. “Just be careful,” he said. “These machines will eat you up.” On most days, the mill looks like a nightmare. A tall chimney shoots an ϐ Ǧ air. Smokestacks let out clouds of white steam. Train tracks divide the drained and dreary earth, and the brown water of the Cuyahoga River slogs toward the mouth of Lake Erie. Many of the buildings, which are

covered in rust and soot, have taken Ǧ blood. Inside those buildings, furnaces blaze and machinery churns and cranes screech under the weight of their loads. Inside those buildings, iron turns to steel. Billows of bright gas leap atop molten metal as it’s poured into ladles standing upward of thirty feet tall. This leaping gas, which looks orange in the metal’s glow, licks and whips in a devil’s dance. Every inch of the mill is a screaming reminder: This is the kind of place that will kill you. This is the kind of place where people have died. ϐ ǡ Ǧ story about a woman he’d known. Like me, the woman was a Utility Worker. Like me, she probably felt grateful for her job in the mill. One day, the woman set her gloves on a steel table near a conveyor belt. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. Everyone set their gloves on that same table. The conveyor belt chugged along, loaded with steel cylinders that weighed twenty or thirty tons. On that particular day, the cylinders on the conveyor belt had been heavily coated in oil. The steel was particularly slick, and the conveyor belt tended to shudder when it moved. Just as the woman reached for her gloves,

one of the cylinders slipped from the conveyor belt and pinned her body against the steel table. Dz ǡdz Ǧ me. “The weight of that steel. It just split her in half.”

ǯ Ǥ Ǧ ined my own body being crushed. Dz Ǧ ǡdz Ǧ Ǥ Dz

the worst part. She was still alive. ‘Get it off me,’ she kept saying. ‘Get it off me. Get it off me.’” I looked down at my dirty hands. The grit of the mill seemed to bore its way into the creases on your palms. It got right down into your skin. Dz ϐ ǡdz Ǧ ǡ Dz instantly.” | clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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The man paused and stared into empty air. He seemed to be looking at something very far away. “Her body,� he said, “her body just fell apart.�

***

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STRONGSVILLE

FEATURE

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

I wasn’t supposed to be a steelworker. I wasn’t supposed to spend my nights looking up at the bright lights on the blast furnace, which glimmered in the starless sky. I wasn’t supposed to learn the language of the mill, telling men twice my age to swing the rolls or jog the mill or clear the line. I attended an all-girls Catholic high school. I ran track. I played Beth in a school rendition of Little Women, and I was valedictorian of my graduating class. The possibilities are endless, adults said to me when I was young. You can do whatever you want in this world! Like a lot of kids who grow up in Cleveland, Ohio, I mostly wanted to leave. In high school I often talked with my friends about our plans of future escape. We would travel far and wide to give ourselves culture. We would attend colleges in legitimate cities like San Francisco or Boston. The real world happened in other cities and other towns, and we wanted to build our lives somewhere—anywhere— but here. As a native-born Clevelander, I had always viewed the mill as part of my ŽƒÂ?†•…ƒ’‡Ǥ – ™ƒ• ƒ Ď?‹š–—”‡ǥ ƒ „ƒ…Â?†”‘’ǥ a given, much like the mountains of –Š‡ ‘…Â?‹‡• ‘” –Š‡ …‘”Â?Ď?‹‡Ž†• ‘ˆ Â‘Â™ÂƒÇĄ and I can still remember driving past the rusty buildings on summer afternoons as a child. My father often took me on errands to pay bills or send packages or pick up groceries at the West Side Market, and we sometimes ˆ‘—Â?† ‘—”•‡Ž˜‡• Â?‡ƒ” –Š‡ ‘”ƒÂ?‰‡ Ď?ŽƒÂ?‡ that shot up from the mill’s furnace. I loved every minute of these afternoons with my father. The most mundane task felt like a mission when I sat in the passenger seat of his station wagon, which was the color ‘ˆ Ď?Ž—•Š‡† •Â?‹Â?Ǥ ‘‰‡–Š‡”ǥ ™‡ ™‡”‡ Timmy and Lassie, Sandy and Flipper, Batman and Robin. We were sidekicks, comrades, kindred souls cut from the same mold. One afternoon, as the station wagon crept toward the mill in heavy –”ƒˆĎ?‹…ǥ Â?› ˆƒ–Š‡” ”ƒ‹•‡† Š‹• Â?‹††Ž‡ Ď?‹Â?‰‡” ƒ– ƒŽŽ ‘ˆ –Š‡ ‹†‹‘– †”‹˜‡”• ™Š‘ didn’t deserve to be on the road.

“Learn how to merge, asshole,â€? he said with a long honk of his horn. I tried not to listen. The man who yelled at passing cars wasn’t the father I usually knew. For the most part, he was a quiet, gentle man who indulged my every whim, but there ™ƒ• •‘Â?‡–Š‹Â?‰ ƒ„‘—– –”ƒˆĎ?‹… ŒƒÂ?• –Šƒ– unhinged him. In those moments, it felt as if he were harboring another person inside. There was a contemptuous spirit lurking below his skin, and the slightest injustice had the power to release it into the world.

…”‹Â?‰‡† ƒ– ‡˜‡”› Â?‹††Ž‡ Ď?‹Â?‰‡” Â?› ˆƒ–Š‡” Ď?Ž‹…Â?‡† ‹Â?–‘ –Š‡ ÂƒÂ‹Â”ÇĄ „—– fought the urge to sink into my seat and disappear. If I disappeared, then I wouldn’t be his sidekick, so I did the only thing that made me feel more comfortable. Copying my father, I scowled at the other drivers on –Š‡ Â”Â‘ÂƒÂ†ÇĄ „—– –Š‡ –”ƒˆĎ?‹… †‹†Â?ǯ– ‡ƒ•‡ despite our frustrations. With a sigh, he turned up the car radio, which was tuned to a fuzzy AM station. Rush Limbaugh was talking about all of the bad things Democrats were doing in America. I was too young to know much about the world, but I was drawn to Limbaugh’s energy. He had conviction and charisma, like a preacher struck by the spirit, and I wanted to believe the things he said, even if I didn’t understand them. At the very least, I grasped the …”—š ‘ˆ ‹Â?Â„ÂƒÂ—Â‰ÂŠÇŻÂ• Â?Â‡Â•Â•ÂƒÂ‰Â‡ÇŁ ‡‹Â?‰ a Republican was good, and being a Democrat was not. My family believed •‘Â?‡ ˜‡”•‹‘Â? ‘ˆ –Š‡ •ƒÂ?‡ǥ ‡š…‡’– ™‡ added a heavy dose of religion into the Â?‹šǤ ‡ ™‡”‡ ‡’—„Ž‹…ƒÂ?• „‡…ƒ—•‡ God wanted us to be Republicans. Satan had corrupted the Democrats by tricking them into the sins of abortion, Š‘Â?Â‘Â•Â‡ÂšÂ—ÂƒÂŽÂ‹Â–Â›ÇĄ ƒÂ?†ǥ ™‘”•– ‘ˆ ÂƒÂŽÂŽÇĄ feminism. Now the Democrats were trying to destroy everything that was good and moral in American society, and it was our job as Republicans to oppose them. • –Š‡ –”ƒˆĎ?‹… ‹Â?…Š‡† ÂˆÂ‘Â”Â™ÂƒÂ”Â†ÇĄ the station wagon drew closer to Cleveland’s industrial valley, which was located just outside the center of the city. My father and I had driven this same stretch of highway many times before. It was one of the main arteries that wrapped around downtown Cleveland, and you could see the Terminal Tower and the Key Building looming to the north. If you looked south, however, you had a bird’s-eye view of the industrial valley, which was often plagued by acrid smells. On some days, you might detect a vague odor reminiscent of decomposing Ď?‹•ŠǤ Â? ‘–Š‡” Â†ÂƒÂ›Â•ÇĄ –Š‡ •…‡Â?– ‘ˆ „—”Â?– rubber might linger in the air. On that particular afternoon, everything smelled like rotten eggs. “Why does it always smell so bad

around here?” I asked over the sound of Rush Limbaugh’s tirade. “It’s sulfur from the steel mill,” my father told me. “Which one is the steel mill?” My father smoothed his mustache ϐ with age. As a child, I often marveled ϐ ǡ his wedding band wouldn’t budge. ϐ gold, forming a smooth indentation in otherwise calloused skin, and he used to joke that it was a good thing Catholics didn’t believe in divorce. “See all of those buildings in the valley?” he said. I stared down at the old rusted buildings, some of which looked close Ǥ the distance, like the remnants of a forgotten city. If there hadn’t been smoke swelling from the smokestacks, I would have assumed they were abandoned. “Yeah,” I said, “I see the buildings.” “Well,” my father said, “most of them belong to the steel mill.” “Really?” Dz Ǥ ǯ Ǥdz From my view on the highway, the mill looked like a cloaked villain, both sinister and mysterious. Nothing good ǡ

me nervous. My grandmother smoked ǡ everyone told her that she was going to get cancer. If something as tiny as a cigarette could make you sick, then the rotten-egg chemicals the mill shot into the air would surely send you to an early grave. I took a shallow breath and crawled forward. Rush Limbaugh boomed on the radio, railing against the Clintons, and I held my breath until Ǥ ϐ and wiggled in my seat, taking tiny Ǥ Like my grandmother’s cigarettes, ǯ quite fathom at the time. It was the dividing line between the generations who had built America and the ones Ǥ Millennial hadn’t yet entered my vocabulary as I held my ǡ understood that my generation had the one contained inside the sulfurous buildings of Cleveland’s industrial Ǥ ǯ ǡ something more than the drudgery of

blue-collar work. If you can dream it, you can do it! they said. Ǩ ǡ ± Ǥ Ǧ covered buildings smelled of rot, not ǡ breath as my father honked his horn. I didn’t care how long it took us to move ϐ ǡ ǯ badly my body wanted air. I was going to hold my breath as long as I could, because I didn’t want the ugliness of the mill inside me.

*** When I was twenty-eight years old and months away from starting at the mill, I was still living on the outskirts of Cleveland. I had rented the only one ǡ that smelled like dead animals. It came ǡ Ǥ were dead mice festering in my walls, my best friend in Washington, D.C. Unlike me, my friend had remained true to her adolescent wanderlust. She Ǥ ϐ into a suitcase, I wondered what I’d

done wrong. My friend and I had both gone to college. We had graduated with bachelor’s degrees and turned a blind eye to our rising debts. Of course, we were both struggling in our own ways, even if my friend had managed to get out of Cleveland. She was barely making ends meet in an Ǧ Ǥ Ǥǡ Ǥ our student loans, and we wondered if we would ever be able to build meaningful lives for ourselves. As teenagers, we had been told Ǥ ǡ and I had chosen English. Admittedly, ǡ ǯ Ǥ ǯ dumb. Symbolism was a waste of time. Ǧ Devil, and wasn’t Ǥ ǡ Ǥ subjects came easily to me, but that Ǥ ǯ ǡ didn’t jibe with the American ethos. in hard work. Earn what you have. Ǥ

JUNE 25-27, 2020 PL AYHOUSE SQUARE

CALLING ALL MUSICIANS!

Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland, presented by KeyBank, is seeking local and regional bands to perform on the outdoor Strassman Insurance Stage at this year’s festival, June 25-27, 2020. Applications will be accepted through March 21, 2020.

To find more information and apply today, visit www.tri-cjazzfest.com. 20-0001

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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FEATURE your bootstraps and build yourself from nothing. A true American passion needed to be conquered, like the ascent up a mountain, so I forsook engineering for English. I wanted to master the thing that I found most †‹ˆĎ?‹…—Ž–Ǥ Back then, my future job prospects didn’t seem like cause for concern. For years, adults had assured me that people with college degrees could ƒŽ™ƒ›• Ď?‹Â?† ÂˆÂ—ÂŽÂŽÇŚÂ–Â‹Â?‡ ™‘”Â?Ǥ – †‹†Â?ǯ– matter what you studied; the degree itself was a golden ticket to a career, •‘ Ď?‹‰—”‡† –Šƒ– ƒ Ž‹„‡”ƒŽ ƒ”–• †‹’Ž‘Â?ƒ ™‘—Ž† †‘ Œ—•– Ď?‹Â?‡Ǥ Š‡Â? –Š‡ ”‡ƒ– Recession hit right after I got my bachelor’s. I hadn’t yet secured a job, and my prospects dwindled to nothing inside a Rust Belt that was hurting for available work. Even so, I wasn’t worried. I still trusted the promises I’d been given in youth, so I enrolled in graduate school in the hopes of becoming a professor. For three years I studied and went to classes. I deferred my student loans, which continued to accrue interest, and I earned a living by painting houses on the side. When the time came for me to get the †‡‰”‡‡ǥ –Š‡ …‘ŽŽ‡‰‡ Â?‘–‹Ď?‹‡† Â?‡ –Šƒ– Šƒ† Ď?‹ŽŽ‡† ‘—– ‘Â?‡ ‘ˆ –Š‡ ‰”ƒ†—ƒ–‹‘Â? forms incorrectly. Even though I had completed the coursework and Ď?‹Â?‹•Š‡† –Š‡ –Š‡•‹•ǥ Â?‡‡†‡† –‘ ƒÂ?‡Â?† –Š‡ ˆ‘”Â? ‹ˆ ™ƒÂ?–‡† Â?› †‹’Ž‘Â?ƒǤ Š‡ problem seemed like a monumental hurdle as I was struggling with an unshakable bout of depression at the time. My life had followed a cascade of unpredictable events, and somewhere along the line I’d lost control. My low, often suicidal mood was only exacerbated by my anxieties about my future, so I ignored the graduation form for months. Inertia took hold, and the months turned to years. I continued to paint houses—I was —Â?ƒ„Ž‡ –‘ Ď?‹Â?† ™‘”Â? Â‡ÂŽÂ•Â‡Â™ÂŠÂ‡Â”Â‡Č„ÂƒÂ?† now I was living inside an apartment Ď?‹ŽŽ‡† ™‹–Š ”‘–Ǥ My couch had been someone else’s trash. My kitchenware had been someone else’s leftovers. My mattress, which I had salvaged from a friend’s attic, was stained with someone else’s menstrual blood. I was glad for a chance to escape the apartment, even if only to spend a few days with my friend in D.C., so I eagerly threw my suitcase into my tiny black hatchback and sped out of Cleveland. When I arrived at my friend’s place for the weekend, we went out and drank whiskey with two men she’d Â?‡– ‹Â? –Š‡ …‹–›Ǥ Š‡ Â?‡Â? ™‡”‡ „‘–Š

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lawyers on the fast track, and they seemed curious about my Cleveland heritage. “So,â€? one of the lawyers said. His thick brown hair was slicked back with just the right amount of gel. “What does Cleveland produce?â€? “What do you mean?â€? I said. “You know, Maine’s got lobsters. Hawaii’s got coffee. Virginia’s got peanuts. What about Cleveland? What comes out of Cleveland?â€? Š‡ Â?ƒÂ?ǯ• “—‡•–‹‘Â? ”‡‡Â?‡† ‘ˆ sarcasm. It was less of a question and more of a challenge. I dare you to Ď?‹Â?† •‘Â?‡–Š‹Â?‰ ‹Â?’‘”–ƒÂ?– –Šƒ– …‘Â?‡• out of Cleveland, Ohio. I sipped my whiskey and thought for a moment. I didn’t know what to say. What did Cleveland produce? What made us important? What separated us from the rest? I couldn’t think of anything, so I did what Clevelanders do best. I made a joke. “What comes out of Cleveland?â€? I said. “Failure.â€? Š‡ Œ‘Â?‡ ‰‘– ƒ ‰‘‘† Žƒ—‰ŠǤ laughed too.

Mistake on the Lake.� It’s an underdog town marked by a spirit of dogged perseverance. Its people have a unique breed of gritty optimism in the face of dire odds. I grew up in the nineties, when every Cleveland sports team carried ™‹–Š ‹– ƒ� —�„”‡ƒ�ƒ„Ž‡ …—”•‡Ǥ Š‡

Â?†‹ƒÂ?• Ž‘•– –Š‡ ‘”Ž† ‡”‹‡•Ǥ Š‡ Browns packed their bags and headed –‘ ƒŽ–‹Â?‘”‡Ǥ Š‡ ƒ˜• ™‡”‡Â?ǯ– ‡˜‡Â? on the map. Every year people always said the same thing: Š‹• Â›Â‡ÂƒÂ”ÇŻÂ• –Š‡ year! It didn’t matter that they’d been saying the same thing for decades. Every year, they had a desperate hope. It might not seem like much—after all, it’s just sports—except it’s not just sports in Cleveland. It’s a way of looking at the world. Of course, the underdog mentality had its disadvantages. It could get so ingrained in your identity that you couldn’t move forward. For years, people had crooned about my potential, but I was a product of my hometown. Every year, I told myself, Š‹• Â›Â‡ÂƒÂ”ÇŻÂ• –Š‡ ›‡ƒ” ‰‡– Â?› †‹’Ž‘Â?ƒǨ

In the winter of 2015, as the holidays were swiftly approaching, my future didn’t look very bright. The house-painting business always slowed from Thanksgiving until Valentine’s Day, and I was strapped for cash. When an old friend asked me to paint a few rooms in the house he’d just bought, I jumped at the opportunity to make some quick money. “It’s too bad that you got stuck in •—…Š ƒ Â†Â‡ÂƒÂ†ÇŚÂ‡Â?† …‹–›ǥdz –Š‡ Žƒ™›‡” •ƒ‹†Ǥ › Ď?‹•– –‹‰Š–‡Â?‡† ƒ”‘—Â?† Â?› ‰Žƒ•• ‘ˆ ™Š‹•Â?‡›Ǥ Š‡”‡ǯ• ƒÂ? —Â?•’‘Â?‡Â? ”—Ž‡ ƒÂ?‘Â?‰ Ž‡˜‡ŽƒÂ?†‡”•ǣ Š‘•‡ Â™ÂŠÂ‘ÇŻÂ˜Â‡ been born and bred in the city can joke about its blunders, but outsiders had better keep their mouths shut. “Listen,â€? I said, “you don’t know shit about Cleveland.â€? Š‡ Â?ƒÂ? Ž‘‘Â?‡† •—”’”‹•‡†ǥ ƒŽÂ?‘•– amused. “We have all kinds of shit that you don’t even know about,â€? I told him, desperate for the right words. “We have the orchestra and the art museum and the lake. We have the fucking Cleveland Clinic.â€? Š‡ Â?ƒÂ? –‘‘Â? ƒ Ž‘Â?‰ •‹’ ‘ˆ ™Š‹•Â?‡›Ǥ No doubt he was trying to discern ™Š‡–Š‡” ‘” Â?‘– ™ƒ• Œ‘Â?‹Â?‰Ǥ ”—–Š is, he had struck a nerve. I felt torn about my city, my home, my heritage. I did feel stuck in Cleveland, but I also recognized the beauty of my hometown. It’s a city nicknamed “the

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

Š”‡‡ ›‡ƒ”• Šƒ† ƒŽ”‡ƒ†› Â‡ÂŽÂƒÂ’Â•Â‡Â†ÇĄ ƒÂ?†ǥ like clockwork, I had fallen short of getting it done. Earning my graduate degree felt too much like a moment of truth. I had spent years trying to „‡…‘Â?‡ ’”‘Ď?‹…‹‡Â?– ƒ– –Š‡ ‘Â?‡ –Š‹Â?‰

ˆ‘—Â?† Â?‘•– †‹ˆĎ?‹…—Ž–Ǥ ˆ ‰‘– –Š‡ degree and failed to secure a job in academia—just as I had failed to •‡…—”‡ ’‘•‹–‹‘Â?• ‹Â? ‘–Š‡” Ď?‹‡Ž†•Ȅ‹– would have meant that my years of study had been a wasted effort. It was better to fail on my own terms. It was safer to paint houses. Before I went to work at the mill, it had never occurred to me that I didn’t know shit about Cleveland, either. My hometown was more than just a city of blunders, but I didn’t realize it as I talked to those lawyers from D.C. › ÂŠÂƒÂŽÂˆÇŚÂ„ÂƒÂ?‡† †‡ˆ‡Â?•‡ Šƒ† ˆƒ‹Ž‡† –‘ persuade anyone, because I was only seeing half of the picture. I couldn’t possibly defend Cleveland’s spirit until I learned to appreciate its orange Ď?ŽƒÂ?‡Ǥ

Â? ƒ —•– ‡Ž– –‘™Â?ÇĄ –Šƒ– Ď?ŽƒÂ?‡ ‹•Â?ǯ– just a harbinger of weird smells and pollution. It isn’t an anachronism, and it doesn’t prove a lack of innovation. While people in cities like San Francisco or Boston might think of –Š‡ Ď?ŽƒÂ?‡ ĥ ƒÂ? ‡Â?„ƒ””ƒ••Â?‡Â?–ǥ ‹–ǯ• something more than that to us. It’s jobs and tax dollars. It indicates a thriving economy. If that Ď?ŽƒÂ?‡ ‹• burning, steelworkers say, then it means that Cleveland is doing all right. Š‡ Ď?ŽƒÂ?‡ ‹• ˜‡”› Â?—…Š ƒ ’ƒ”– ‘ˆ ‘—” history and our identity. It’s a steady reminder that some things can stand the test of time, even in a world where nothing is built to last. Š‡ Â?‹ŽŽ ‹–•‡Žˆ Šƒ• •–‘‘† ‘Â? –Š‡ banks of the Cuyahoga River for more than a century. Back in the early 1900s, the river provided access to a wider world. Barges traveled the

”‡ƒ– ƒÂ?‡• „‡ˆ‘”‡ •Š‹Â?Â?›‹Â?‰ —’ –Š‡ river, delivering raw materials to the Â?‹ŽŽ ƒÂ?† –”ƒÂ?•’‘”–‹Â?‰ Ď?‹Â?‹•Š‡† •–‡‡Ž –‘ anyone who would buy it. From the turn of the twentieth century until now, the mill has gone through booms and bankruptcies and name changes. It’s been the colossally successful ‡’—„Ž‹… –‡‡ŽǤ –ǯ• „‡‡Â? –Š‡ Â‹ÂŽÂŽÇŚÂˆÂƒÂ–Â‡Â† Ǥ –ǯ• ™‡ƒ–Š‡”‡† †‡’”‡••‹‘Â?• ƒÂ?† ”‡…‡••‹‘Â?•Ǥ –ǯ• •—”˜‹˜‡† Ď?Ž—…–—ƒ–‹Â?‰ prices and foreign imports. It’s adapted to new technologies and new markets and new demands. Even now, the mill keeps chugging along. Inside its borders, men and women work long hours to make a living. It’s ƒ ‰‘‘† Ž‹˜‹Â?‰Ǥ ‘‘† „‡Â?‡Ď?‹–•ǥ ‰‘‘† ’ƒ›Ǥ One person’s salary can feed a family, so the men and women chug along at –Š‡ Â?‹ŽŽǯ• ”ƒ’‹† ’ƒ…‡Ǥ Š‡› Šƒ˜‡ „ƒ‰• under their eyes and dirt under their Ď?‹Â?‰‡”Â?ƒ‹Ž• ƒÂ?† ˆ—ŽŽ› Ž‘ƒ†‡† —•–ƒÂ?‰• beneath the rooftops of their garages. Š‡› ™‘”Â? –Š”‘—‰Š –Š‡ Â?‹‰Š–Ǥ Š‡› ™‘”Â? –Š”‘—‰Š –Š‡ Š‘Ž‹†ƒ›•Ǥ Š‡› work through marriages and divorces, birthdays and graduations, sicknesses, †‡ƒ–Š•Ǥ Š‡› Â?‡‡’ –Š‡ •–‡‡Ž Â?‘˜‹Â?‰Ǥ Š‡› Â?‡‡’ –Š‡ ’”‘†—…–‹‘Â? Š‹‰ŠǤ Š‡› work for ten hours, twelve hours, sixteen hours straight. If they don’t do it, someone else will. A job in the mill is a coveted position. Hundreds, sometimes thousands, of people vie ˆ‘” ƒ ˆ‡™ ‘’‡Â? •’‘–•Ǥ Š‡› ™ƒÂ?– ™Šƒ– –Š‡ Â?‹ŽŽ ‘ˆˆ‡”•Ǥ Š‡ Ž‹˜ƒ„Ž‡ Â™ÂƒÂ‰Â‡ÇĄ –Š‡ ‰‘‘† „‡Â?‡Ď?‹–•ǥ –Š‡ —Â?‹‘Â? ’”‘–‡…–‹‘Â?Ǥ Š‡› ™ƒÂ?– –‘ ˆ‡‡† –Š‡‹” ˆƒÂ?‹Ž‹‡•Ǥ Š‡› want the American dream, or what’s left of it.

*** In the winter of 2015, as the holidays were swiftly approaching, my future didn’t look very bright. Š‡ ÂŠÂ‘Â—Â•Â‡ÇŚÂ’ÂƒÂ‹Â?–‹Â?‰ „—•‹Â?॥ ƒŽ™ƒ›• •Ž‘™‡† ˆ”‘Â? ŠƒÂ?Â?•‰‹˜‹Â?‰ —Â?–‹Ž

Valentine’s Day, and I was strapped for cash. When an old friend asked me to paint a few rooms in the house he’d just bought, I jumped at the opportunity to make some quick money. I lugged my drop cloths up his driveway on a cold gray morning, edging my way past a brand-new pickup truck. It was the tricked-out kind that costs money, which seemed odd to me. The last time I’d seen my friend, he had been working overtime just to pay off the loan on a shitty old Pontiac. When I got to his door, he greeted me with a quick hug and a cup of coffee. He had the rich, buttery accent of someone who’d spent his childhood in Puerto Rico, and the two of us got to talking while I worked. We asked about each other’s families and relationships, and we caught up on gossip about mutual friends. Eventually the conversation turned to our jobs. “I started working at the steel mill a while back,” he said, smiling proudly. A maze of freckles patterned his round cheeks, making him look younger than his thirty odd years. “I never would have been able to afford a house otherwise.” “The steel mill?” I asked with a pan of drywall mud in my hand. “No way. Do you work with the molten metal and stuff?” “Kind of. I’m in steel producing, but I mostly just clean the tundishes.” I continued to patch cracks and holes as I talked, my drywall knife scraping against the walls like nails on a chalkboard. “The what-dishes?” I said. “The tundishes.” He went into a lengthy explanation about equipment I couldn’t even imagine at the time. He talked about the caster and the BOF and these things called tundishes that apparently needed to be cleaned quite often. “That’s crazy,” I said when he ϐ Ǥ “Yeah, I know. I really don’t mind it, though. It’s a union job, so it’s got ϐ Ǥ ǯ know how much you make as a house painter, but you should really think about applying.” I thought back to those ugly buildings that I had once driven past with my father. I still didn’t really know what a tundish was, but I was pretty sure that I didn’t want to clean one. “I don’t think I’m cut out to be a steelworker,” I said. My friend turned ϐ on his dining room table while I ϐ ϐ Ǥ “Here,” he told me. “Let me show you

something.” I set my drywall knife aside, and he handed me a crisp blue pay stub. I honed in on the section labeled Gross Income. “Shut up,” I said. “You make that much money?” “Yep,” he said with a smile. Seeing my friend’s paycheck was enough to make me forget about my childhood fear of the Ǥ ϐ house, I doctored up my résumé and embarked upon a four-month- long application process that involved so many tests and background checks that I wondered if I had been recruited into the FBI. When the mill ϐ ǡ accepted without hesitation. It was ϐ Ǧ ǯ ǡ but it didn’t damage my underdog persona. I was still an underemployed English major who had hopes of becoming a professor. I was still striving toward a goal that I was too afraid to attain. When I accepted the offer, I called my friend to tell him the good news. “Just be careful,” he said after congratulating me. “Don’t get caught up in all the money. I’ve seen it a hundred times. Someone smart comes to work in the mill. Maybe they could’ve been somebody someday, but they get used to all that money. They buy new cars and new houses. Before you know it, they’re trapped.” I assured him that I wouldn’t suffer the same fate. I was striving ϐ more. Many months later, however, I sat behind the steering wheel of the brand-new car that I’d bought with my newly found income. I rode along the same stretch of highway that I had once driven down with my father. ϐ sky, and liberal pundits on the radio talked about all of the industrial workers in the Rust Belt who elected Donald Trump to the presidency. I hadn’t been one of them, but I also fell into a slew of other demographics. I was college educated, a Millennial, a woman. But I was also now a steelworker. These people had become my people. Our country felt severed, as if crushed by a great weight, and I was straddling some invisible divide. ϐ ǡ

ϐ a steelworker in my situation. I breathed deeply and raised my hand. Then, with great love and affection, I ϐ ϐ Ǥ

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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APRIL 6-12, 2020 We’re brin gin g you $2 Tacos from s ome of CLEVELAND’s most popular taqueros!

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ClevelandTacoWeek.com

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

GET OUT everything you should do this week Photo courtesy of Wizard World

WED

03/04

SPORTS

Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics Tonight at 7 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the Cleveland Cavaliers face a tough Boston Celtics team vying for a high playoff seed, so don’t expect the Cavs to come away with a win. Though the Cavs picked up one of the NBA’s better big men when they traded for Andre Drummond at the trade deadline, the team still holds one of the worst records in the league. Consult the website for ticket prices. (Jeff Niesel) 1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, rocketmortgagefieldhouse.com. MUSIC

Chamber Music in the Galleries This monthly concert series at the Cleveland Museum of Art places young musicians from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Case Western Reserve University in the CMA galleries for “a unique and intimate experience.” The performances often feature instruments from the museum’s keyboard collection. Tonight’s concert begins at 6 and lasts for about an hour. Admission is free. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org. SPOKEN WORD

Cleveland Stories Dinner Parties Cleveland Stories Dinner Party is a weekly series that pairs fine food with storytelling. Through it, the folks at Music Box Supper Club hope to raise awareness of the mission of the Western Reserve Historical Society’s Cleveland History Center. The goal is to “bring to life some of the fun, interesting stories about Cleveland’s past — from sports, to rock ’n’ roll, to Millionaires’ Row,” as it’s put in a press release. Admission is free, with no cover charge, although a prix fixe dinner, designed to complement the night’s theme, is $20. Tonight, Randy Nyerges talks about the book he wrote about Charles Ramsey, the man who helped rescue Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight. Doors open at 5 p.m., dinner is served at 6, and the storytelling starts at 7. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-242-1250, musicboxcle.com.

Wizard World returns to the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland. See: Friday.

listening to some of their Cleveland neighbors tell tall tales. Tonight’s show features the theme, “Dating.” The hosts are Adam Richard and Zachariah Durr. The program starts at 8 p.m. sharp at the Happy Dog. The program will repeat at 5:30 p.m. on Monday at the Collinwood branch of the Cleveland Public Library. Admission to each event is free. Want to be a storyteller at a future session? See details at Facebook.com/ KeepTalkingCLE. (Niesel) 5801 Detroit Ave., 216-651-9474, happydogcleveland.com.

inventive take on the country-house thriller.” A press release promises that suspense abounds throughout the “fiendishly cunning show” about a mystery writer fascinated by games. Tonight’s performance, put on by Great Lakes Theater Company, takes place at 7:30 at the Hanna Theatre. Tickets cost $15 to $89. The show runs through March 8. (Niesel) 2067 East 14th St., 216-241-6000, greatlakestheater.com.

MUSIC

COMEDY

Rock Hall Nights On select Wednesday nights, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame hosts Rock Hall Nights, evenings of special programming. Tonight from 6 to 9, the theme is “on the radio,” and there will be a radio studio tour with On-Air SiriusXM DJ Rachel Steele, a look at the CD/radio/cassette boom box used by Rolling Stones’ road technician Chuch Magee, stories of rock trivia, and Alan Freed film screenings. Admission is $21, or free for Cleveland residents and Rock Hall members. (Niesel) 1100 Rock and Roll Blvd., 216-515-8444, rockhall.com.

Iliza: The Forever Tour Comedian Iliza Shlesinger brings her Forever tour to Connor Palace tonight at 7. She’s been plenty busy lately. Last year, she released her fifth Netflix special, UnVeiled, and her The Iliza Schlesinger Sketch Show is currently in production. Tickets to tonight’s show start at $35. (Niesel) 1615 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

Monsters vs. Laval Rocket The Monsters kick off a two-game series against the Laval Rocket tonight at 7 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Tonight, it’s Hockey Hoppy Hour, and lower-level tickets cost a mere $12 (and include a free drink). The Monsters play the Rocket again tomorrow night at 7, and the first 10,000 fans will receive a Bjorkstrand championship bobblehead. (Niesel) 1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, rocketmortgagefieldhouse.com.

MUSIC

THEATER

Mendelssohn’s Second Symphony Mendelssohn’s Second Symphony premiered in 1840 to celebrate the quadricentennial of Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press, and Mendelssohn called it his “symphony-cantata.” Comparing the piece to Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, composer and critic Robert Schuman wrote, “The work was

The Real Inspector Hound Tonight at 7:30 at the Outcalt Theatre, Cleveland State University’s Department of Theatre and Dance presents Tom Stoppard’s The Real Inspector Hound, its second theater production of the year. This play within a play is “part parody, part farce, part whodunit, and explores the ideology of free will

SPOKEN WORD

THEATER

Keep Talking Keep Talking is a monthly storytellers’ series that offers attendees the chance to grab a drink and a dog while

Sleuth Sleuth, which won the 1971 Tony for Best Play and was adapted to film on three separate occasions, offers “an

THU

03/05

enthusiastically received, and its choral numbers especially must be counted among the master’s freshest and most delightful creations.” Tonight at 7:30 at Severance Hall, the Cleveland Orchestra plays the piece. Performances repeat on Saturday night at 8 and Sunday afternoon at 3. Consult the orchestra website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 11001 Euclid Ave., 216-231-1111, clevelandorchestra.com. SPORTS

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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2020

for Rock Hall members. (Niesel) 1100 Rock and Roll Blvd., 216-515-8444, rockhall.com.

GET OUT

BOOKS

and fate.” Tickets cost $15, and a dinner option is available for $25. Performances continue through March 8. (Niesel) 1407 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org. THE ROAD TO THE ROCK HALL BEGINS WITH THE ROCK OFF

COMEDY

Taylor Tomlinson Comedian Taylor Tomlinson comes to Hilarities tonight for a series of shows in the wake of her newly debuted Netflix special, Quarter Life Crisis. Tomlinson, who finished in the Top 10 in the ninth season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing, is a regular on What Just Happened??! with Fred Savage. She began doing standup at age 16 after taking a class with her dad, and she regularly jokes about growing up in a highly religious family and practicing abstinence in high school. Tonight’s show takes place at 7 at Hilarities, where shows continue through Sunday. Consult the Hilarities website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 2035 East Fourth St., 216-241-7425, pickwickandfrolic.com.

FRI

03/06

COMEDY

Michael Blackson Known as the “African King of Comedy,” Michael Blackson developed his comedic skills with original humor and the ability to be fearless on stage. He jokes about current affairs and takes aim at celebs such as Kim Kardashian and Michael Jordan; however, he also focuses on more serious topics such as race, his love for America and his African descent. He performs tonight at 7:30 and 10 at the Improv, where he has shows scheduled through Sunday. Tickets cost $35. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-696-IMPROV, clevelandimprov.com. FILM

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

CURAETION-25: From Here to There This documentary film captures the Cure on the 10th and final night of the 25th Meltdown Festival (curated by Cure lead singer Robert Smith) at London’s Royal Festival Hall in June of 2018. The band performs a song from each of its 13 studio albums in chronological order. The movie screens at 7 p.m. at the Rock Hall. Tickets cost $10. Admission is free

Deanna R. Adams Book Signing Local writer, speaker and essayist, Deanna R. Adams serves as the longtime coordinator of the Western Reserve Writers’ Conference and “book whisperer” for the Cuyahoga County Library’s William N. Skirball Writers’ Center. She also teaches online writing courses for the Pennwriters organization. She’s just published Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Venues, a book that documents the history of the city’s rock clubs with a series of photos and short blurbs about venues such as the Agora and the Beachland. She’ll read from her book tonight at 7:30 at Visible Voice Books. Admission is free. (Niesel) 2258 Professor Ave., 216-961-0084, visiblevoicebooks.com. DANCE PARTY

First Friday Funk Social On the first Friday of every month at the Jukebox, Max Payola, DJ Hama, and DJ Rachel H host an all-vinyl dance party focusing on “freaky-deaky and profound grooves.” Celebrate the rich history of funk and R&B with these cultural curators. Expect to hear cosmic funk, wicked funk, sweaty funk, sophisticated funk, rump funk and more. It all starts at 9:30 p.m., and admission is free. (Niesel) 1404 West 29th St., 216-206-7699, jukeboxcle.com. THEATER

Flanagan’s Wake Flanagan’s Wake transports the audience to an Irish wake where villagers tell tales and sing songs for their dearly departed Flanagan. Finding the humor in life and death, the wake acts as a dark backdrop to an otherwise hilarious show in which alcohol fuels the humorous reminiscing. The interactive and improvised show engages the entire audience as the guests are treated as the friends and family of the deceased. Tonight’s show starts at 8 and repeats tomorrow night at 8 at Kennedy’s Theatre. Performances continue weekends through April 25. Tickets are $27. (Patrick Stoops) 1501 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

COMEDY

Jim Gaffigan Jim Gaffigan, one of the world’s highest-grossing standup comedians, embarked on an arena and theater comedy tour earlier this year. He brings the tour to the Wolstein Center at 8 tonight. The slow-talking clean comic has also gotten cast in several movies as of late too. Tonight’s show should feature plenty of new material. Tickets start at $35.75. (Niesel) 2000 Prospect Ave., 216-687-9292, wolsteincenter.com.

over linguine. Other menu items include potato pancakes served with apple-cranberry chutney, and farmhouse-cheese and potato pierogi. During Lent, the kitchen opens at 11 a.m. and serves fishcentric meals until midnight. Prosperity also offers some smaller dine-in or take-out midday portions to accommodate people who work 9 to 5. Prosperity’s Lenten Fry-Days will continue through April 10. Reservations are a good idea. (Niesel) 1109 Starkweather Ave., 216-937-1938, prosperitysocialclub.com.

FOOD

Lenten Fry-Days For the past 14 years, Prosperity Social Club has hosted a fish fry on Friday nights during the Lenten season. The big draw is the golden fried haddock with sweet potato fries and slaw; it’s so popular, the restaurant and bar even sells a special Gotta Haddock commemorative T-shirt! But wait, there’s more: Prosperity’s fish dishes will also include a panroasted and maple-bourbon glazed salmon with roasted broccoli and sweet potato mashers, and a pan sauteed shrimp piccata in lemonbutter sauce with capers served

ART + MUSIC

Mix: Masquerade The first Friday of each month, the Cleveland Museum of Art hosts its popular Mix at CMA event. The museum stays open later than normal for the occasion, which features dance, drink and a theme-based program. Tonight’s event celebrates Mardi Gras and Carnival, with a festive New Orleans vibe. DJ Walk and Da Land Brass Band will be on hand for the event, and guests are invited to make their own masks. Tickets are $10 in advance, or $15 at the door, but CMA members get

in for free. The party runs from 6 to 10 p.m. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org. FILM

Vampyr As part of a special series devoted to the work of director Carl Theodor Dreyer, the Cleveland Museum of Art will screen his 1932 film Vampyr at 7 tonight and at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. The film centers on a stranger who can’t understand why the locals in a small European village behave in such a strange manner. Tickets cost $11, or $8 for CMA members. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org. AN ANIMATION CELEBRATION

Wizard World Cleveland This year’s Wizard World Cleveland, an annual convention that comes to the Huntington Convention Center, will feature the debut of Animation Celebration, an event that will feature creators and voice actors from some of the most iconic animated films and TV shows in history. The weekend will feature appearances by animation artists and voice actors as well as handson drawing and voice acting

workshops, screenings, a cereal breakfast with the animators and more. Artist Alley at Wizard World Cleveland will return with artists and writers such as Jim Steranko (Nick Fury Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., Captain America), Barbara Kaalberg (Barbie, Wonder Woman), Mike Watson (Freestyle Komics), Tone Rodriguez (The Simpsons, Dexter) and Dan Gorman (Mississippi Zombie, Marvel, DC trading cards). Kato Kaelin will once again serve as host. Hours are 4 to 9 p.m. today, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. tomorrow and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Kids 10 and under get in free with a paid adult. Consult the website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 500 Lakeside Ave., 216-928-1600, wizardworld.com/comiccon/ cleveland.

SAT

03/07

SPORTS

Cavaliers vs. Denver Nuggets Tonight at 7:30 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the Denver Nuggets, one of the best teams in the Western Conference, come to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse to take on the Cavaliers. It’s the only time the Nuggets come to Cleveland this

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

19

M A RC H 18 - 28 // TH E H E LE N

AT P L AY H O U S E S Q UA R E

Ordinary is Extraordinary

MIDDLE TOWN

GET OUT year. Consult the website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, rocketmortgageďŹ eldhouse.com. MUSIC

BY W I L L E N O D O N A L D C A R R I E R

Erotic City: All-Vinyl Prince Party In honor of Prince’s “funky euphoric legacy,� local DJs Rachel H. and Jackie B. will spin Prince hits and deep cuts all night long at this event that starts at 9 at Mahall’s 20 Lanes in Lakewood. They also promise to “sprinkle in collaborators Sheila E, Jill Jones, The Time, Vanity 6, Morris Day, Apollonia, Chaka Khan, and more.� A Prince-inspired drink menu will be served with vegan, gluten-free and sober-friendly beverages. Tickets cost $5. (Niesel) 13200 Madison Ave., Lakewood, 216-521-3280, mahalls20lanes.com. FILM

Rocky Horror Picture Show It’s the ďŹ rst Saturday of the month again, so tonight the Cedar Lee Theatre hosts its usual midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, the 1975 cult classic that still draws an exuberant, costumed crowd that likes to throw rice and dry toast and sing along to the songs in the movie. In addition, locals act out a oor show that mimics the movie, turning the event into a veritable party. Tickets are $9.75. (Niesel) 2163 Lee Rd., Cleveland Heights, 440-528-0355, clevelandcinemas.com. SPOKEN WORD

TIC KE TS // O N LY $15 20

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

Coming Attractions

Mike Tyson This touring show, dubbed Mike Tyson Undisputed Truth: Round 2, ďŹ nds the former boxing champion delivering a “no-holds-barred, one-man show.â€? According to a press release, Tyson will deliver “real life untold stories, focusing on the ups and downs of his tumultuous and ultimately triumphant, post-boxing life and career.â€? The bout begins at 8 at MGM NorthďŹ eld Park – Center Stage. Check the website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 10705 NorthďŹ eld Rd., NorthďŹ eld, 330-908-7793, mgmnorthďŹ eldpark.mgmresorts. com.

THAT GOLDEN GIRLS SHOW: A Puppet Parody March 13-15

A CAPPELLA LIVE! March 20

RAIN – A TRIBUTE TO THE BEATLES The Best of Abbey Road Performed Live March 28

THE MUSICAL BOX A Genesis Extravaganza Vol. 2 March 29

TOMMY EMMANUEL May 3

THE BACHELOR LIVE ONSTAGE April 3

BONEY JAMES October 3

216-241-6000 Group Sales 216-640-8600 playhousesquare.org

SUN

03/08

SPORTS

Cavaliers vs. San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs have one of the NBA’s best coaches in Gregg Popovich, but this year’s team just doesn’t have the talent and might miss the playoffs. That won’t be Popovich’s fault. The longest tenured active coach in the NBA has gotten the best out of his players this year. Expect tonight’s game to be a close one. Tipoff is at 7:30 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Consult the website for ticket prices. (Niesel) 1 Center Court, 216-420-2000, rocketmortgagefieldhouse.com.

MON

03/09

Apollo Theatre, Capitol Theatre, Cedar Lee Theatre, Chagrin Cinemas and Tower City Cinemas. Unfortunately, additional charges apply for 3-D movies. (Alaina Nutile) clevelandcinemas.com.

10 p.m. (Niesel) 2785 Euclid Heights Blvd., Cleveland Heights, 216-932-1966, bsideliquorlounge.com.

TUE

03/10

SPOKEN WORD

Science Cafe Cleveland The second Monday of each month, Music Box Supper Club hosts Science Cafe, an informal lecture series that brings scientists from throughout the region to the club so they can talk about science topics. Tonight at 7, Chris Haufe from the Department of Philosophy at Case Western Reserve University will speak about whether we can trust science. Admission is free. (Niesel) 1148 Main Ave., 216-242-1250, musicboxcle.com.

FAMILY FUN

NIGHTLIFE

Movie Mondays Every Monday, Cleveland Cinemas hosts $5 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

Shit Show Karaoke Local rapper/promoter Dirty Jones and Scene’s own Manny Wallace host Shit Show Karaoke, a weekly event at the B-Side Liquor Lounge wherein patrons choose from “an unlimited selection of jams from hip-hop to hard rock,” and are encouraged to “be as bad as you want.” Fueled by drink and shot specials, it all goes down tonight at

THEATER

Jesus Christ Superstar A classic musical that comes to us courtesy of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, Jesus Christ Superstar features rousing Broadway belters such as “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” and the glorious title track. For this 50th anniversary production, an additional 22 Northeast Ohio string players will join the 11-piece ensemble of touring musicians to create a 33-piece orchestra that’ll deliver the soundtrack in all its glory. Tickets start at $39, and the play continues through March 29 at Connor Palace. (Niesel) 1615 Euclid Ave., 216-241-6000, playhousesquare.org.

20th century. The film shows how Freud depicts himself in more than 50 paintings, prints and drawings. It screens at 1:45 today at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Tickets cost $15, or $11 for CMA members. (Niesel) 11150 East Blvd., 216-421-7350, clevelandart.org. MUSIC

Vinyl Night Jukebox owner Alex Budin has described his 1,350-squarefoot 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.” The club hosts a vinyl night every Tuesday that serves as a listening party for new releases, partnering with Loop in Tremont, so patrons can hear a new album on vinyl. You can bring your own vinyl and spin it too. It all starts at 5 p.m. (Niesel) 1404 West 29th St., 216-206-7699, jukeboxcle.com.

FILM

Lucian Freud: A Self Portrait David Bickerstaff directs this film about Lucian Freud, one of the greatest realist painters of the

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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STAGE A FIESTY, FIERCE AND RABBLE-ROUSING SAINT Shaw’s Saint Joan comes alive at the Ohio Shakespeare Festival. by Christine Howey Photo by Scott Custer

THE MOST FAMOUS CROSSDRESSER in the history of the world may be a young woman from 15th-century France, a person who arguably has had more words written about her (not to mention paintings, sculptures, and musical compositions) than anyone else. Yes, we have been fascinated by Joan of Arc for a very good reason: She rose from obscurity to challenge the immense power of secular and religious institutions. She disdained women’s clothing and a woman’s traditional role while burnishing her image as a courageous and fearless female who refused to take second seat to anyone. The celebrated Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw was similarly affected and wrote the play Saint Joan, which is now on stage at the Ohio Shakespeare Festival in Akron. And it is a production that is well worth the short jaunt down Route 8. As you may know, Joan was dubbed the Maid of Orleans and was put on trial by the Brits after her exploits on behalf of the French forces during the Hundred Years’ War. When she rejected an offer of clemency in exchange for renouncing her beliefs, she was burned at the stake before her 20th birthday. But as a character says later, “Her heart would not burn, she is alive everywhere.” And so she is. It may not be too glib to observe that, if she were around today, Joan would be diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Like Greta Thunberg, our teenage climate-crisis Cassandra, Joan could not abide deceit and hypocrisy. And she would not be silenced or impeded from her goal. Moreover, Joan receives specific and detailed direction from voices that she knows for a fact come from God. She has no need for the trappings of the Church and all its rules and rigmarole when she has a hotline to the Man, Himself. When it comes to having the courage of their convictions, Joan and Greta are a matched pair. Observed from that angle, Saint Joan has a very contemporary vibe. And this lively production under the direction of Nancy Cates avoids most of the chuckholes this material can fall into, while providing a number of impactful and clarifying moments. Plus swordfights!

22

Tess Burgler, as Joan of Arc, crafts a fine performance.

That said, even in this lightly abridged version, the layering of religious, philosophical and legal palaver can be, at times, a bit much. Shaw was a man who never settled for one word when 20 were possible, and he wields his prolix proclivities with unstinting ardor. Of course, the chances for pontification are many, since Joan has a wide variety of antagonists. These include Peter Cauchon, the Bishop of Beauvais (a nicely tight-ass Ryan Zarecki who also plays the stud Lord Chamberlain), the Archbishop

and as the Earl of Warwick, Terry Burgler handles his chores efficiently but with little clear delineation of the two roles. And James Rankin is most affecting in the conflicted role of John de Stogumber, the chaplain who evolves from fierce accuser to broken man after he witnesses Joan’s immolation. The major comedy relief comes in the persona of Charles, the Dauphin, who is given a stellar turn by Geoff Knox. Charlie disclaims any interest in being an adult in the world, asserting that he chooses not to be a father, a son, a military hero or a leader of any kind.

SAINT JOAN THROUGH MARCH 15, PRODUCED BY THE OHIO SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL AT GREYSTONE HALL, 103 SOUTH HIGH ST., AKRON, 888-718-4253 OHIOSHAKESPEARE.COM

of Reims (the splendid actor Brian Pedaci who, in this role and as the Executioner, tends to swallow the ends of his sentences), and Dumois, the Bastard (Joe Pine, admirably intense as always). The imposing Inquisitor is played by Jim Fippin, who executes a nifty acting grand jete from his earlier portrayal of a lickspittle Steward to become the main man controlling Joan’s fate. Double-cast as both the Steward’s boss Robert de Baudricourt

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

He becomes a work-in-progress for Joan, who tries to implant a functional spine into the amoeba-like Dauphin. And it’s a treat to watch Knox slither and slide among all the stalwart dudes in his court as he tries to avoid his responsibilities. Of course, the key part in this play is Joan herself, and Tess Burgler is more than up to the task. Early on, her Joan bubbles with teenage passion as she wheedles her way up the chain of command, perplexing the older males

in power with her unabashed optimism and boundless self-confidence. But Burgler’s performance is launched to another level in the second act, when the captured Joan is tried by church officials. Bruised and slumped on a stool, she essays a dicey threestage transition from wise-cracking defendant to totally melted-down victim and finally to the ennobled character who lives in our dreams. It’s a fine, well-crafted piece of acting. As an atheist, Shaw pokes fun at the church bigwigs and exposes their corrupt nature. But he also gives them credit for sometimes trying to see both sides, even through the cloud of their dogma, as they try to extend to Joan a bit of mercy. But those efforts end up strapped to a stake set ablaze, along with our protagonist. While we don’t see that conflagration, its effects are apparent in the trembling accounts of onlookers who are sure to be haunted by that event for life — as the Church itself was for eons, before canonizing Saint Joan 100 years ago this May.

Christine Howey, former stage actor and director, is executive director of Literary Cleveland.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

MOVIES TROLLS 2 Onward is predictably solid family fare By Sam Allard LIKE VIRTUALLY ALL PIXAR FILMS, from 1995’s Toy Story to 2017’s Coco, the premise of Onward, which opens Friday in wide release, is built on solid imaginative foundations. Set in a fantasy land that resembles suburban U.S.A., the film is a standard teenage quest story in which the protagonists happen to be trolls (or elfs, or something). On his 16th birthday, the socially awkward Ian (Tom Holland) is left a gift from his father, who died before he was born. It’s a wizard’s staff, complete with an incantation that will supposedly bring Ian’s father back to life for 24 hours. Ian and his older brother Barley (Chris Pratt) attempt the spell, but only get it half right. Their father returns as a sentient, but unspeaking and unhearing, set of legs. The film’s central story, then, follows the brothers as they attempt to hunt for a magic stone that will allow them to cast the spell again, in time to see their full father in the flesh before he disappears forever. They are pursued, through the night, by their attentive mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and a griffinesque restaurant owner (Octavia Spencer) with a powerful, if dormant, magical heritage. Like good PG fare, Onward is full of memorable visual gags. The silent, torso-less father accompanies the brothers on their quest and is the source of endless slapstick.

Photo courtesy of Pixar Animation Studios

So is Barley, who is reduced to Thumbelina size when another spell goes awry and then accidentally provokes a biker-gang of fairies. The condition of Barley’s van, too, a junkyard salvage decked out in purple spray paint, provides

recurring humor and even gets a soldier’s send-off. It’s not all physical humor, though. Complete with a climactic confrontation and a touching emotional resolution, Onward is high-grade family entertainment of the sort audiences

expect from Pixar. And yet, after the revelatory talking toys, fish and cars of previous Pixar worlds, to say nothing of the visual splendor of Coco or the bold visions of Wall-E and Inside Out, Onward seems destined to land in the middle of the pack within the Pixar canon. Though sweet, it’s somewhat pedestrian in its ambitions, and looks to be capitalizing on Stranger Things fervor alongside the Ghostbusters reboot later this year. Beyond the magical history of the elves, the impulses and relationships — and even activities — of these characters are entirely human. They go out to dinner at kitschy chain restaurants. They play variations on Dungeons and Dragons. It’s all extremely suburban. For the record, this critique speaks more to Pixar’s high bar than Onward’s deficiencies, which are only evident by comparison. The director, Dan Scanlon, previously helmed Monsters University, another Pixar middle-of-the-packer. The Pixar writers’ room, it must be said, remains the best in the biz at nailing the beats of any family film. When the revelatory moral of the story hits, it does so with surprising emotional force and clarity.

sallard@clevescene.com t@scenesallard

SPOTLIGHT: EMMA GIVEN THAT SO MANY RECENT art-house movies have centered so squarely on serious social issues — not that there’s anything wrong with that! — Emma, a lighthearted comedy based on the Jane Austen novel of the same name, comes off as a welcome change of pace. The movie opens area-wide on Friday. Like the Austen novel, the film is set in England in the 1800s. A comedy of manners, it takes on issues of class, sex and social status, and director Autumn de Wilde doesn’t need to alter the source material too much to make it seem relevant and modern.

The plot revolves around Emma (Anya Taylor-Joy), a particularly precocious young women who lives in a giant mansion with her eccentric father (Bill Nighy), a guy who still refers to his other daughter’s wedding as a “bad day.” Much to her possessive father’s delight, Emma declares she has no desire to marry, yet she likes to play matchmaker. Her skills in this department, however, are severely lacking. When her close friend Harriet (Mia Goth) receives a marriage offer from Robert Martin (Connor Swindells), a local farm boy, she tells Harriet to turn the offer down because she can do better.

Emma’s neighbor George Knightley (Johnny Flynn) chastises her for the short-sighted advice, but the everassured Emma tells him she’s never been wrong. Emma is in for a rude awakening as she discovers she might not know people as well as she thinks. When the mysterious Frank Churchill (Callum Turner) snubs her for another woman, Emma begins to confide in George, and she thinks twice about his criticisms, especially after she says something particularly condescending to her well-meaning neighbor Miss Bates (Miranda Hart) while picnicking with friends and family.

Best known for photographing CD covers and publicity photos for rock bands, de Wilde deserves credit for perfectly casting the movie. Taylor-Joy’s model-esque good looks suit the role of Emma perfectly, and Flynn possesses the right amount of charisma to play the cavalier George Knightley. Hart, too, brings pathos to the bumbling Miss Bates. We probably didn’t need another adaptation of Emma, but de Wilde doesn’t do the original work a disservice with this fine film.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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EAT 50 YEARS AND 10 BLOCKS New home, same comforting soul food at Angie’s By Douglas Trattner AKIN ALAFIN, OWNER OF SOUL Republic United Restaurants, likes to say that the new Angie’s Soul Cafe in Midtown is a homecoming long overdue. It was less than a halfmile away, at the former Carnegie Hotel, that founder Angie Jeter got her professional cooking start, preparing the city’s finest soul food for enthusiastic lunchtime crowds. When that hotel closed, Jeter hung out her own shingle, relying on the same treasure trove of Southern recipes that she inherited from her mother. Step inside the newly unveiled Angie’s restaurant on Carnegie, located in the longtime home of Hot Sauce Williams, and you will enjoy staples ripped straight from Jeter’s steamy childhood kitchen in Union, South Carolina. The smell of freshly baked cornbread hangs in the air, the cackles of an exuberant dining party bounce around the room, and a friendly cashier beckons for the next person in line. Unfortunately, that person carried only paper money and was thus prevented from ordering at this cash-free eatery, one that accepts solely credit cards and modernday equivalents like Apple Pay and Google Wallet. This, despite signs plastered inside and out, countless media mentions, and a sympathetic employee who kindly reminds every other customer about the unconventional practice. This is an Angie’s Soul Cafe for the modern age. While the food is every bit as wholesome, satisfying and comforting as it always has been, nearly every other aspect of the business has changed. A yearlong renovation of the moldering structure has resulted in a warm, bright and uncluttered space that stows the ubiquitous steam table neatly out of view. Even dear old Angie has succumbed to the fastcasual tsunami, one that treats both dine-in and carry-out customers alike, right down to the plastic food containers, cutlery and sauce ramekins. An efficient system moves diners through the ordering and payment process. Those who are camping out receive a table flag to guide food runners. Take-out customers grab

Photo by Emanuel Wallace

a seat at a table or bench and wait for their name to be called. Ticket times at both lunch and dinner topped out at 15 minutes and orders were accurate, complete and packed with care. Dine-in customers have the added benefit of enjoying a cold Corona or Dos Equis ($3.75) on the side. Angie’s is rightly celebrated for its fried chicken, lightly seasoned with a thin, crisp coating. I recently enjoyed

seasoned and freshly fried filet of fish alongside two slices of white bread, thick round of tomato and shredded lettuce. Packets of tartar sauce and hot sauce are tossed in as well. I’ve always been deeply enamored of Angie’s pork chops ($14.95), a pair of semi-thick bone-in chops that are fried, baked and smothered in sweet onions and thick gravy. As with all entrees, the price includes two

ANGIE’S SOUL CAFE 7815 CARNEGIE AVE. 216-426-8890 ANGIESSOULCAFE.COM

a four-piece dark-meat combo with two thighs and two drums ($12.95), but other white, dark and wing combinations are available. A word of caution: Order the dark-meat fried chicken sandwich ($8.50), as I did one day while running errands, and it will arrive with a bone-in thigh and drumstick. This is no drivingaround sandwich. A far better option for one-handed dining is the fried catfish sandwich ($9), a lightly breaded, gently

sides and a fragrant corn muffin. I have yet to see a crispy french fry at Angie’s, but the mac and cheese is thick, creamy and mild, the collard greens are pleasantly meaty, the black-eyed peas earthy and firmtender, and the steamed rice ideal for sopping up anything saucy. I’m not sure why it’s taken me 20 years to order the baked chicken and dressing dinner but it might be the best thing on the menu. The dark meat version ($12.95) comes

with a thigh and drum, both falloff-the-bone luscious, fine-grained cornbread stuffing, a ladle or two of flavorful poultry gravy and a shot of tart cranberry jelly. Conversely, I’ll likely never again order the Western-style ribs ($11.95). It’s not the generous portion of bone-in pork that sinks the dish, but rather the thick sweet and sour sauce that clings to every bite. For dessert there’s sweet potato pie, peach cobbler and vanilla caramel layer cake. It took Alafin months longer than he had anticipated to purchase, renovate and reopen the Carnegie restaurant, which replaces the long-standing shop on St. Clair. But already the destination feels like an enduring fixture in the Midtown landscape, a present-day Carnegie Hotel where the day’s most pressing matters are ironed out over a plate of fried chicken and collard greens. And Angie is there, too, if not in the flesh then on the wall, admiring a culinary adventure that has spanned 50 years and 10 blocks.

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

FIVE YEARS BACK, SYNDEE Bergen and Wendy Thompson packed up their popular sweets shop A Cookie and a Cupcake and relocated to a new home in Tremont. Now, the 12-year-old business will pack up once again for yet another move, this time to the adjacent neighborhood of Ohio City. The new home will be on West 25th Street, sandwiched between Ohio City Burrito and Bad Tom Brewing, in the former Joy Machines Bike Shop space (1836 West 25th St.). In anticipation of the move, they will close the doors to their current location (2681 West 14th St., 216-3449433) before the end of February with hopes of reopening in midMarch. Custom orders are still being taken and prepared out of the store’s Tremont commissary. The move was precipitated by a combination of factors that included an ending lease and the availability of a great new location. Still, Bergen says, the relocation is bitter sweet. “It’s super sad because we love Tremont, which not only incubated us but has always been good to us,” she says. “We love it and we don’t want to move, in all honesty. It’s hard work starting over, but hopefully we’ll have a lot people who follow us.” A new home means an opportunity to reevaluate the business model, and that’s precisely what Bergen and Thompson will be doing. Because the new home is directly across the street from Mitchell’s Ice Cream, Cookie and a Cupcake will jettison that portion of the product line. Instead, the team will focus on expanding its current line of ready-made items like cookies, cupcakes, cakes and brownies, while adding new items. Bergen anticipates the new home to come with increased foot traffic, which means making sure there is plenty of tantalizing retail product ready to go, which also will be an adjustment that needs to be addressed. “We are very lucky to have a

lot of clientele who come to us for all of their orders for special occasions,” Bergen explains. “Right now, I would say that we’re about 70-percent custom order. But at the new location I think we’re going to have a lot more retail walking in. That will be trial and error; we’ll have to see how it goes.” As always, Bergen encourages ordering ahead to ensure that shoppers get what they want and need.

Lakewood’s Thai Thai Restaurant to Reopen on March 17 October 28 was a tough day for Thai food fans as that was the date that Thai Thai restaurant shut its doors. Bitter, yes, but also sweet because the move was just a necessary step in a relocation process that will net diners a new dining room in an expanded space. Now, some four months later, we finally have what we were waiting for: a reopening date. That will occur on Tuesday, March 17, when the four-year-old restaurant opens for business down the street at 13415 Madison Ave. (216-961-9655). The wildly popular eatery, which is run by Siriphan “Kiwi” Wongpeng and her mother, father and brother, features authentic versions of the foods the family enjoyed back home in Thailand. By focusing on a stripped-down menu of exciting street foods and Thai classics, the kitchen manages to hit every dish out of the park. The larger space will allow the family to expand its repertoire, adding more noodle soups and other favorite dishes from back home.

dtrattner@clevescene.com t@dougtrattner

Scene is Bringing Together NE Ohio’s Best Restaurants to Celebrate Your Favorite Meal of the Week!

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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LIVE AREA= 19.25 X 12�

scene@clevescene.com | t@clevelandscene

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

WHETHER THE LEVEE BROKE LAST summer at the Peach Festival in Scranton, Pennsylvania, remains a point of debate. However you want to look at it, though, things changed on that late-July afternoon. There they were, Goose, under auspicious sunlight, performing to a crowd of thousands. Not to put too fine a point on it, but you could see the signs of Goose’s rise in digital word-of-mouth very clearly around that time. It was a hell of a thing to watch: the linksharing of live shows, the excitable comments on other bands’ message boards (“Goose is an amazing band,” ca. Aug. 13), the chatter over vape carts outside venues from coast to coast. The buzz around this funky band from the Northeast absolutely exploded toward the end of the 2019 festival season. Ever since, it seems like you can’t share a donut with someone in the jam scene without them trying to turn you onto Goose.

Everything just seemed to click, suddenly, without warning, at the Peach gig. Guitarist Rick Mitarotonda was sitting down on stage, his left knee wrapped in a brace, and the visual incongruity somehow magnifies the situation in retrospect. The musicians had sprouted quadruplet mustaches for the summer. It’s a memorable look. They slotted both a Dead song and a welltimed Bruce Hornsby hit into the set and navigated between older tunes (“Arcadia,” a highlight) and newer tunes that would soon top their Spotify page (“Wysteria Lane”). The band — Peter Anspach on keys and guitar, Trevor Weeks on bass, Ben Atkind on drums, with Mitarotonda rounding out the stage — memorializes the show thus on their Bandcamp page: “This was a very special show! A huge crowd of rowdy funky flockers in attendance having a great time!!” Wherever you stand on the Goose train, that much can’t be denied.

From the band’s fall tour through their current set of dates in the winter and spring of 2020, they’ve been selling out left and right. “It feels surreal,” Anspach says from a landline out on the West Coast. “It feels awesome, and we’re so grateful. It’s something not a lot of musicians get. It’s something not a lot of writers get.” Goose returns to Cleveland on Thursday to play the Agora. They’ll be opening for Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, providing an avian theme to the tour if you’re into that trip, and the energy shows no signs of slowing. Back in December, the band performed their annual Goosemas show in Norwalk, Connecticut, another sold-out show that featured a dazzling set list of yuletide classics, latter-era Goose crowd-pleasers and a spaced-out take on “Tomorrow Never Knows,” because whythehellnot? Their set lists spin

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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MUSIC

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STEVE EARLE & THE DUKES

ALL SHOWS AT THE KENT STAGE UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED Tickets available at thekentstage.com or 877-987-6487 GMK [w cw i {{ © a{ B e~ JJHJF

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

like kaleidoscopes, tilting into early material, clever covers and newly written originals. Not too long before the band’s sudden fireworks display, they were gigging around hilly Wilton, Conn., and slinging bar shows to crowds of a dozen or so. There’s no way to work around that stage of a young band’s development without diving in and spending long nights cutting your teeth. The sweat equity began to build into something greater than the sum of its parts. In early 2016, a different incarnation of the band released Moon Cabin, a finely wrought psychedelic jazz-folk album that showcased Mitarotonda’s airy vocals and an ensemble that was clearly devoted to inventive songwriting and the patience required to develop a singular voice as a band. Anspach joined the team at the end of 2017, the final piece in a

releasing these songs, Anspach says, a predetermined order. But as far as the actual practice of recording these tunes, some interesting connections have arisen. Goose recorded “Butter Rum” at a studio in Colorado, which called back Mitarotonda’s time living in Fort Collins and performing that song with his previous band (Vasudo). Each single features artwork by Jason Piperberg. (The band hit a studio in Los Angeles on Feb. 11 to record the next single. Keep an eye out for that one soon.) At the Peach Fest show last year, the band played “Time to Flee,” an Anspach-written number that traces the introspection found inside a sudden breakup with a significant other. It’s a straightforward theme tackled by countless musicians before him but, here, in Goose, the sentiment transforms into a funky elevator metaphor and a rhyme scheme that’s catchy as all get-out. A jaunty melody winds through the song, punctuated during the chorus with snappy percussion and a head-bobbing vamp.

PIGEONS PLAYING PING PONG | GOOSE 8 P.M. THURSDAY, MARCH 5 AGORA THEATRE, 5000 EUCLID AVE., 216-881-2221 TICKETS: $28.50 ADV, $33.50 DOS. AGORACLEVELAND.COM

series of lineup changes, right as Goose was waiting to hear back about opening a seven-show run for Spafford. He’d been playing guitar in Great Blue, a power trio from the same neck of the woods. The thing was, Anspach needed to learn how to play keys first. He quickly took care of business, and Goose hit the road. At the fourth show on their run together, the bands were playing a sold-out show in Detroit, and that’s when the reality of the matter really sunk in for the new guy on the keyboard. “That was an insane experience,” he says. “It felt like I was being cast into the fire. It made it that much more fun.” Now, in early 2020, the band has two projects in front of them. One is a full-length album that was written as a followup to Moon Cabin, a project into which the band has been blending Anspach over the past two years. The other project’s roots can be found on the string of singles Goose started releasing in 2019. There’s a method to how they’re

The interplay among the four musicians is impeccable, and the Peach Fest version gives way to a keys-led jam that shows off the guys’ ability to let it rip on stage, far off from the main structure of a particular song. “Instantly, stuff will start to happen that’s pretty unusual,” Anspach says of the band’s forays into the improvisational. “As long as we’re listening, we’re probably not going to fall on our faces.” This spring, the shows with Pigeons Playing Ping Pong are another feather in their cap. Goose’s 2019 set at Dome Fest, a festival hosted by Pigeons in West Virginia, was another turning point for the band in its headlong dash across the past 12 months of jamming. “It’s really cool,” Anspach says. “They have an incredible fan base that’s been super welcoming to us.” Goose’s shooting star is a humble phenomenon to watch. From where we’re standing now, it seems like there’s nowhere to go but up — further into the cosmos, wherever their will takes them.

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HOUSE OF BLUES: 308 Euclid Ave, Cleveland OH 44114 masoniccleveland.com / houseofblues.com | clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020 31

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| clevescene.com m | March 4 - 10, 2020

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MUSIC Photo by Quinn Russell

LLEN STONE IS WELL aware that his face is at odds with the soulful music he creates — just scroll through the comments on any of his YouTube videos and people can’t believe he’s a white guy. But for the past decade, Stone, with his goofy grin and thickrimmed glasses and deep-woods Pacific Northwest upbringing, has continued to write and play songs steeped in R&B and Marvin Gaye as that’s the only thing that feels right to him. “I have a major case of imposter syndrome,” Stone admits in an email interview. “I’m constantly thinking that somebody will figure out that I am a hack and this whole music ride will be over … real glad that hasn’t come true yet.” But the reason people continue to come out to his shows is that what transpires is the real deal. “I love playing music [on stage],” Stone says. “If you do it right, and you have the proper intention, you can find perfect presence.” Up there under the heat of the lights and people, he grooves easily

love song. Yet, Stone is still out there trying. His newest music video for the saccharine single “Consider Me,” which dropped right before Valentine’s Day, not only features Taye Diggs as a disgruntled wedding planner but also includes vignettes of his fans’ own love stories. The lyrics here aren’t concerned with hookups or onenight stands: Rather, they’re about finding the perfect way to tell another person you want to be with them wholly and fully. Elsewhere on the record, the rockin’ neo-soul tune “Brown Eyed Lover” talks about the giddy first days of new love, while the dreamy “Give You Blue” is a straight-up love letter to his wife. Other tunes do delve into breakup territory, but unlike previous efforts, Stone largely steers clear from topics of politics and mental health. In the past, Stone has gone out of his way to show that this old-school sound wasn’t only made for sex and clubbing, yet here he seems to have given in to turning love (and the balancing of that) into

Allen Stone | Samm Henshaw 8 p.m. Friday, March 6 House of Blues, 308 Euclid Ave, 216-523-2583 Tickets: $25-$88. houseofblues.com

He Walks The Line Singer-songwriter Allen Stone aims to show the love song isn’t dead By Laura Morrison

in the funk and leads his band through a powerhouse set full of bangers and ballads with his breathy vocals. He isn’t afraid not only to show how weird he is but also how normal. It’s fitting, then, that the title of Stone’s late-2019 record is Building Balance; he’s always walked the line between wannabe and miracle and saint and sinner. These days, the 32-year-old who grew up a pastor’s kid is a father and husband. He needs to work, but he’d also like to be home with his family in Spokane. “I am definitely more equipped to maintain balance in my life than I have ever been,” Stone says. “Balance and centeredness is an active journey, though. You never arrive. It’s a moving target that must be pursued day in and day out.” Right now, while on a tour which stops at House of Blues on Friday, he says that cold showers and meditation help him maintain some semblance of stability. But it’s getting to sing the new songs every night that really keeps him rooted. Through his music, Stone says he wants to evoke change, and with this new record, he’s using love songs to do so. At a base level, the world probably doesn’t need another

the theme. Although this third album with ATO Records feels deeply personal, Stone had help with Building Balance from producer Jamie Lidell and also from his own band. “The fellas whom I have shared the road with for many years helped me write a majority of this record,” Stone admits. “Whenever you bring new people and new angles to a project, it always informs the destination.” And for right now, the destination is getting the songs heard across the country. For the upcoming Cleveland show, which unfortunately isn’t a part of Stone’s recent karaoke tour that invited select audience members on stage to sing tunes with him, the artist is simply trying not to take a second of the ride for granted. “It is still a bit confusing,” Stone says. “I grew up in a real small town — roughly 1,000 people total. At a good amount of these shows there are more people in the audience than live in the town where I was raised. That can instill an interesting vibe.”

lmorrison@clevescene.com | t@lowesays | clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

LIVEWIRE

all the live music you should see this week Photo by Robert Sutton

WED

to Athens, Georgia, more than 20 years ago to seek out musicians who shared his sensibilities. He moved there in 1993 and successfully launched the band that’s still going strong. The band’s latest album, UR FUN, embraces ’80s alternative rock and psychedelia. (Niesel) 8 p.m., $20 ADV, $22 DOS. Beachland Ballroom. Bill Rudman’s “Seize the Day”: 2 p.m., $35. Nighttown. School of Rock: 2 p.m., free. CODA. Short Fictions/Hit Like a Girl/ Tunnel Songs (in the Locker Room): 7:30 p.m., $10. Mahall’s 20 Lanes. Speak Low If You Speak of Love/ Kayak Jones/Super American/ Deep Sigh: 6 p.m., $15 ADV, $17 DOS. Mahall’s 20 Lanes.

03/04

Black Lips/Poppy Jean Crawford/ Leaf Borbie & the Family Tree: 8 p.m., $22. Beachland Ballroom. Master Sword/WASD/ Axemaster/88bit: 8:30 p.m., $8. Grog Shop. Ben Miller/Leaking (in Mahall’s Apartment): 9:30 p.m., $5. Mahall’s 20 Lanes. Open Spaces Trio & Oregon Space Trail Of Jazz: 7 p.m., $12. Bop Stop. Frankie Valet/Learning Curve/ Flipcoin (in the Locker Room): 8 p.m., $6. Mahall’s 20 Lanes. The Yawpers/Copper Thieves Int’l: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Beachland Tavern.

THU

Kevin Griffin: 7:30 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. The Make-Up/Hello!3D: 9 p.m., $20 ADV, $22 DOS. Grog Shop. Pigeons Playing Ping Pong/Goose: 8 p.m., $28.50 ADV, $33.50 DOS. Agora Theatre. Geoff Tate/Mark Daly: 8 p.m., $27 ADV, $30 DOS. Beachland Ballroom. Therapy Thursday Featuring Clyde Maruna & Nuke Franklin: 8 p.m., free. CODA.

FRI

Joe Bonamassa comes to Playhouse Square for two shows. See: Friday.

03/05

03/06

back to BACK TO BLACK: Amy Winehouse Tribute featuring Remember Jones + a 12-Piece Orchestra: 8 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. Joe Bonamassa: For this tour, singerguitarist Joe Bonamassa plays “a signature selection from his vast track record of No. 1 albums, with classics, reinventions and more.” His backing band is full of luminaries, includes Late Night with David Letterman’s Anton Fig (drums), Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Reese Wynans (piano/organ), and Nashville recording legend and Musician’s Hall of Famer Michael Rhodes (bass) — plus backup singers. On his latest album, Live at the Sydney Opera House, Bonamassa shows off his chops on hard-driving rockers such as “This Train” and “Mountain Climbing,” bluesy numbers that he infuses with plenty of grit. (Jeff Niesel) 8 p.m., $72-$202. Connor Palace. Bro Dylan/Mimi Arden: 8 p.m., $10

ADV, $12 DOS. Beachland Tavern. DJ LDC’s Soul Music & Other Music for the Soul: 6 p.m., free. Happy Dog. fig/Kiss Me Deadly/Corry Michaels: 8 p.m., $7. CODA. Judy Gold/Ryley Nezballa: 7:30 p.m., $25. The Kent Stage. Grow the Scene Winter Meltdown: 7:30 p.m., $10 ADV, $12 DOS. Grog Shop. Jazz Jam Session: 11 p.m., free. Bop Stop. Nanny & Dani Assis Brazilian Sextet + Moises Borges: 8:30 p.m., $20. Nighttown. Oblivion Project and Carla Canales: 8 p.m., $20. Bop Stop. Reigning Sound/The Alarm Clocks/Bloodshot Bill/The Venus Flytraps: 8 p.m., $16 ADV, $18 DOS. Beachland Ballroom. Allen Stone/Samm Henshaw: 8 p.m., $25 ADV, $30 DOS. House of Blues. Tweed (in the Supper Club): 7:30 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. Uncanny Valley/Cave Yeller/Fan Fiction: 9 p.m., $6. Happy Dog. Jackie Warren: 10:30 p.m., free. Nighttown.

SAT

03/07

’70s Soul Jam with the Stylistics/ Heatwave/The Emotions/Blue Magic/Sonny Bivins Manhattans: 8 p.m. Wolstein Center. Aretha Franklin Tribute by Thornetta Davis (in the Supper Club): 8 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. Blue Lunch Featuring Job Striles: 8 p.m., $20. Bop Stop.

Joe Bonamassa: 8 p.m., $72-$202. Connor Palace. Dear Messenger/Stay Gone/Life Magnetic: 8 p.m., $7. CODA. The Hedgehog’s Dilemma/Gelatinous Cube/Victory Lapse: 9 p.m., $6. Happy Dog. Dave Mason: 8 p.m., $52-$62. The Kent Stage. New Bomb Turks/The Chargers Street Gang/The Missed/DJ Erin “Hot Trash” Ryan: 8:30 p.m., $20. Beachland Ballroom. Peace Frog – A Tribute to The Doors: 8 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. Angela Perley/The Village Bicycle: 8 p.m., $12 ADV, $15 DOS. Beachland Tavern. Pure Dawg/Acrylic Grooves/Funny Business: 9 p.m., $8 ADV, $10 DOS. Grog Shop. Bill Rudman’s “Seize the Day”: 7 p.m., $35. Nighttown. Michael Stanley and the Resonators: Stage Pass Revisited: 7:30 p.m., $38.50-$50.50. Akron Civic Theatre. Jackie Warren: 10:30 p.m., free. Nighttown. Young Dolph/Key Glock: 8 p.m., $35 ADV, $40 DOS. House of Blues.

SUN

03/08

Bear Hands/IRONTOM: 8 p.m., $18 ADV, $20 DOS. Grog Shop. Cleveland Rocks To End Alzheimer’s: 7 p.m., $29. Bop Stop. Lakeland Community College: Jazz Impact: 2 p.m., $7. Bop Stop. Newberry & Verch: 7 p.m., $20. Nighttown. Of Montreal/Lily and Horn Horse: Of Montreal’s Kevin Barnes moved

MON

03/09

Dumbo Gets Mad/Sea Moya: 9 p.m., $13 ADV, $15 DOS. Beachland Tavern. Eric Johnson: 8 p.m., $35-$45. The Kent Stage. Raul Malo: 7:30 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. Audrey Mika/Souly Had: 8 p.m., $18 ADV, $23 DOS. House of Blues Cambridge Room. OM/Wovenhand: 8:30 p.m., $18 ADV, $20 DOS. Grog Shop. Ruby Groove/Funny Business/JBO: 7:30 p.m., $7. CODA.

TUE

03/10

Elohim/Bahari/Mehro: 6:30 p.m., $20 ADV, $25 DOS. House of Blues Cambridge Room. Gladie/Sure, Machine: 8:30 p.m., $10 ADV $13 DOS. Beachland Tavern. Jauz/DREZO/HOUSELOADZ: 8 p.m., $26 ADV, $31 DOS. House of Blues. Howard Jones/Nick Beggs/Robin Boult/Rachael Sage: 8 p.m., $40$450. The Kent Stage. Theo Katzman/Rett Madison: 8 p.m., $20 ADV, $25 DOS. Beachland Ballroom. Killswitch Engage/August Burns Red: 6:30 p.m. Agora Theatre. Kasim Sulton’s Utopia: 7:30 p.m. Music Box Supper Club. Weedeater/The Goddamn Gallows/ The Atomic Bitchwax/ Worshipper: 8 p.m., $20 ADV, $22 DOS. Grog Shop.

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene | clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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BAND OF THE WEEK THE BLACK LIPS MURDER MYSTERY DINNERS

By Jeff Niesel

MARCH 19, 20 & 27 AT 7:30PM

MEET THE BAND: Cole Alexander

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(vocals), Jared Swilley (vocals, bass), Jack Hines (guitar), Oakley Munson (drums) and Zumi Rosow (saxophone)

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DISCO INFERNO

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Lips have worked their way from sweaty basement shows in their native Georgia to huge crowds at international music festivals â&#x20AC;&#x201D; including a performance at Fun Fun Fun Fest that appears in Terrence Malickâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ďŹ lm Song to Song. Alexander and Swilley formed the band in 1999 when they used to hang out at skate parks together.

though brilliant, didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t directly inspire Sing in a World Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Falling Apart. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re cool, but I never heard that record until we did this one,â&#x20AC;? he says in reference to Ween. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have checked it out, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really cool. They went straight-up Nashville with professional players. We like any sort of fuzzy kind of country and weird stuff and murder ballads.â&#x20AC;? WHY YOU SHOULD HEAR THEM: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hooker John,â&#x20AC;? the free-wheeling opening track on Sing in a World Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Falling Apart, references the prostitutes who hang out in

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They released their self-titled debut in 2003 and have toured and recorded ever since. The band has even visited places such as India, Jordan, Cyprus, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraqi Kurdistan and the United Arab Emirates.

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

EMBRACING COUNTRY MUSIC: The bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

new album, Sing in a World Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Falling Apart, ďŹ nds the garage punk act embracing an old-school country sound. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve just made a whole lot of garage and punk records, but we never go into anything thinking weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll go in any direction,â&#x20AC;? says Swilley when asked about the shift in musical direction. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We all like country music, but I kind of wish we wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have told anyone it was a country record. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not really a country record but just something we wanted to do.â&#x20AC;? The record recalls Weenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 12 Golden Country Greats, but Swilley says the Ween album,

Alexanderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s neighborhood. It features Dylan-like vocals and twangy guitars, and the somber â&#x20AC;&#x153;Chainsawâ&#x20AC;? ďŹ nds the Black Lips delivering a bona ďŹ de ballad. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think we have one record in us thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s along the same lines as this one,â&#x20AC;? says Swilley when asked about what the groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s next album will be like. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We had a lot of extra material we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t use for this album. We also talked about doing a holiday record or a disco record.â&#x20AC;? WHERE YOU CAN HEAR THEM:

black-lips.com. WHERE YOU CAN SEE THEM: The Black

Lips perform with Poppy Jean Crawford and Leaf Borbie & the Family Tree at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, March 4, at the Beachland Ballroom.

jniesel@clevescene.com t@jniesel

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37

REWIND

46 YEA R S AG O O N T H IS DAT E

T

HIS JULY, CLEVELAND Scene will turn 50 years old, and in advance of the occasion, we’ve decided to dig into the archives on a weekly basis to republish something that appeared in the paper on that date (or thereabouts) during Scene’s first decade. This interview with Stephen Stills by Jim Girard appeared in the issue that came out on March 7, 1974. It featured the headline, “Stephen Stills — This band is better than Manassas,” a reference to the band Stills had formed with Chris Hillman of the Byrds.

*** It all began with a phone call to publicists Gibson & Stromberg, who handle many top artists on tour. Would Stills like to do an interview when he got to Cleveland? “Sure,” I was told. Well, a somewhat disabled and fevered Stephen Stills got into town on Monday to prepare for a Tuesday concert. And after the concert, Stills went into relative seclusion with his French singer-wife Veronique — who, by the way, was eight months pregnant. And it wasn’t until about three thousand and twentytwo phone conversations with his road manager, that a Friday morning breakfast interview was arranged. By then it seemed that his broken ankle, acquired from slipping on ice at Cleveland Hopkins Airport, was healing. Likewise, his 102-degree fever had subsided. Stills, of course, hadn’t planned on spending five days in Cleveland, Ohio. Yet, the legendary musicians’ musician had managed to do some serious drinking the night before, as evidenced by his eyes that morning. But eggs, toast and gallons of juice, milk and coffee began to focus his eyes on things and stop his babbling about the previous evening’s party. After a short discourse about impeaching president Nixon (something Stills has been encouraging for years, if you’ll recall), he began the interview. SCENE: Is this your last tour for a while, considering Veronique is having a baby? STILLS: I really don’t think so, but I don’t know. I’ve got to finish by new album first (working title is MY FAVORITE CHANGES). It was supposed to be finished before this tour, but it didn’t happen. You can’t just say ‘I’m

38

going to have this finished by next Friday.’ Because when next Friday comes, you may only have the bass and drums recorded. And since tours have to be planned months in advance, you have to drop everything and go out and play for a few months … it’s the new American efficiency, you know. SCENE: You played the title cut from the new album (“My Favorite Changes”) the other night and you said it was a combination of some other songs. Just which ones are they? STILLS: Well let’s see. First off it’s “Rock And Roll Woman,” which begat “Questions,” which begat Neil Young’s “Cinnamon Girl.” They’re all built on the same chord structure … you know, an F, Dm7 and so on. SCENE: What about the tracks you were supposed to have recorded in Colorado with Veronique. Are they duets or is it stuff like on her Elektra album that was released here? STILLS: No. I just gave her my new band and told her to do some things. She cut a couple of sides and I helped with the production. She’ll be on her own again, but right now she’s concentrating on being a mommy. The baby should be due around mid-April. SCENE: What about the new band? You’ve got Barnstorm’s Kenny Passarelli on bass. I know you’ve used him before, but it’s beginning to look like a permanent thing. STILLS: Joe Walsh was about to fire his band, Barnstorm. So, Kenny quit. He’s in the band for good now. SCENE: You mean Walsh just went out and broke up his band — just when they were getting really respected and successful? STILLS: What can I say? Joe went to Hollywood and some cats told him he needed a new band. So, he’s getting one now. I think his band was too big anyway; Joe really only needs a bass, drums, and keyboards player behind him … and maybe not even a keyboard player. SCENE: How is your new band working out? STILLS: This band is better than Manassas. We’re just getting used to playing smaller halls again. With Manassas we were playing gymnasiums and arenas and Joe, Kenny and I were

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

used to cookin’ at that level … it’s rough. People say we play too loud. But this is my best band musically. We get along too. There’s no ego thing present. SCENE: Is your new interest in touring due to change of management or just because of the band? STILLS: AHHHHHHHH!!!! (he screams). Everybody thinks I’ve just left Geffen-Roberts. I’ve been gone for three years now, just before the first STEPHEN STILLS album. SCENE: Yes, but didn’t the liner notes on BOTH solo albums say something like “Direction by GeffenRoberts” on the credits? STILLS: Right, but they slipped that in there themselves. They went to the record company or something. They didn’t want everybody to know I’d left them. They’re like that. SCENE: Was Manassas formed when Chris Hillman and A1 Perkins were still with The Flying Burrito Brothers? STILLS: Yeah. I just asked The Burritos down to Miami to cut some country stuff. Once Rick Roberts heard what was going down, he suggested that Chris and A1 (who were the only ones actually playing with Stills — ed.) join the rest of us and make it a full-time “band. Rick is such a nice guy and he wanted to be a folk singer anyway. There wasn’t anything happening with The Burritos either. Rick saw how painfully obvious it was that Manassas was SO good together. It was a natural. SCENE: Is Manassas formally broken up? STILLS: It seems that way, but you know how it goes. SCENE: You played a Neil Young song, “New Mama,” in your last set the other night. It’s about having a baby. Did he write it for you or what? STILLS: No. He wrote it about a year ago and could never get the right arrangement for if. He never liked the way it came out. But it was a song that said what I wanted to say, but couldn’t. Neil’s forte is lyrics, you see. Mine is arrangements. So he never got to cut it, but I wanted to use it. It fits. SCENE: Do you see Neil Young much anymore? STILLS: He just sat in with us at

Kennedy Center in Washington. It was nice. SCENE: Is there really going to be another Crosby, Stills, Nash and/or Young album or tour? STILLS: First date is July 4 in Tampa, Florida. It should be a weird tour. SCENE: But what about an album? STILLS: That whole thing is one of the funniest situations imaginable. We’re gonna tour first, just to see if we’ll feel like doing an album. It’s such a touchy thing. But it’ll just be an acoustic thing. I think we probably won’t use a band. I don’t have any idea what’ll happen. All I can say is that I sure do like MY band. I’m gonna keep my band; we’ll see what happens. SCENE: What’s the thing about CSN&Y that is so complex? STILLS: Don’t ask. As far as I’m concerned Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young is a myth; it’s really always just been an extension of the Buffalo Springfield. SCENE: So what about The Buffalo Springfield reunion thing. Is that ever gonna happen, considering Richie Furay is recording with Chris Hillman and John David Souther? STILLS: Again, as far as I’m concerned, if Neil Young and I play on the same stage at the same time; that’s the Buffalo Springfield. Richie wasn’t that crucial. (He pauses and thinks about what he’s said.) I know David Geffen wouldn’t dig me saying that. Richie wouldn’t either, but that’s it really. SCENE: You don’t even have a name for the band yet, do you? STILLS: Hell. We’ve been trying to come up with a name for weeks now. How about Stephen Stills and “Dialing for Dollars.” Or Stephen Stills & The “Price Is Right.” It’s gotta be a good name. Actually, I think we have a name. We’re gonna call it STEPHEN STILLS & LOMACHS. It’s a word one of our roadies uses constantly; he used to work for Jackie Lomax, but we don’t want to spell it that way. He calls everybody and everything a “lomachs.”

scene@clevescene.com t@clevelandscene

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39

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SAVAGE LOVE FULL-THROATED by Dan Savage I’m a middle-aged gay man and I was recently diagnosed with sleep apnea. This is a disorder caused by the soft tissue in the throat collapsing during sleep. On top of making me feeling tired and awful all the time, sleep apnea is associated with a long list of health complications. I’m writing you because I’m into very rough oral. I like it when a guy treats my throat like a Fleshlight. Gagging and retching turn me on. Since I don’t want to risk making my condition worse, I stopped giving blowjobs after my diagnosis. But will giving blowjobs the way I like to give them actually make things worse? The internet was not helpful, and I didn’t feel comfortable asking the sleep specialist. — Really Excited To Choke Harmlessly

of strengthening those muscles.” Now, there’s no evidence that having your throat used like a Fleshlight will strengthen your ol’ throat muscles, but there’s no evidence that getting face-fucked will weaken them, either. (Needless to say, there aren’t a lot of studies on OSA and rough oral sex — and seeing as our public-health officials are busy trying to protect us from a worldwide pandemic and our imbecilic president, there probably won’t be any studies anytime soon.) “Ultimately, I don’t think your reader is at risk of making his sleep apnea worse by continuing his oral sex practices,” said Dr. Grosz. “And to improve his sleep apnea, he could make sure he maintains a healthy weight, doesn’t smoke, and avoids excess alcohol or sedatives.”

“The vast majority of people with sleep apnea have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is what I assume this individual has,” said Dr. Anna Grosz, a board certified otolaryngologist in practice in Portland, Oregon. “It results from muscle relaxation and collapse in the airway (throat), which narrows the passage for air to flow and then makes it harder to breathe and get oxygen.” (Otolaryngologists specialize in diseases and disorders of the ear, nose, and throat.) So when you fall asleep, RETCH, the muscles in your throat relax and collapse, restricting your ability to breathe. Your brain — which doesn’t want to die — responds to this oxygen deprivation by waking you up, which tenses your muscles back up, uncollapsing them, and allowing you to breathe again. “Someone with OSA gags or chokes in response to the apnea, not as a cause,” Dr. Grosz clarified. “And while the contraction of the muscles opens the airway, it leads to poor sleep because the person is constantly being woken up.” Now for the good news: Dr. Grosz doesn’t think choking on dick is going to make your OSA any worse, RETCH, and it might even make it better. “Theoretically,” said Dr. Grosz, “increased tone of the muscles of the airway might be a good thing in terms

*** I’m struggling and could use some advice. I have a cast fetish — think orthopedic casts — and my wife isn’t interested at all. To be clear, I don’t want her to be injured in any way and I certainly don’t want to injure her. I just like the idea of her wearing a cast on her leg. It’s not even entirely sexual. If she would just wear a cast for a couple of hours while we hang out and watch a movie, I’d be happy. When we met eight years ago, I was in denial about the importance of my fetish, both to myself and to her. I’ve since realized that it’s a deal breaker for me, and it’s clear we wouldn’t be together today if I had been aware of the extent of my fetish when we first met and been able to be honest about it. Over the years, we’ve briefly spoken about incorporating it, and we had a single failed attempt a few years ago. I’ve finally come to the realization that this isn’t going to happen without it being forced or coerced. She’s recently offered to participate, but only because she thinks she needs to in order to “save our marriage.” How do I cope with this? Obviously, a need of mine will be perpetually unmet. How do I keep myself from resenting her for not being more open-minded? Is our marriage doomed? We have a 9-month-old child. — Churlish About Sudden Turn

You just had a child — because of course you just had a child — which means now is not the time to do anything stupid. Or rash. And ending your marriage because your wife failed to understand how important your fetish was to you before you understood how important your fetish was to you would be both stupid and rash. So take a deep breath, help care for your baby, and have a conversation with your wife the next time she isn’t completely exhausted, CAST, which could mean waiting three to six months. If it’s clear when you talk that she hates the thought of pulling on a fake cast and watching a movie with you — what you say you need to be happy — that will come out in the conversation. But if she’s come to understand how important this cast business is to you and how little it actually requires of her, please do yourself, your wife, and your baby a favor and take the yes you’ve always wanted for a motherfucking answer. And finally, CAST, I don’t know what your dick is telling you right now, but just in case it’s telling you there are hordes of women out there with cast fetishes who are also into recently single new fathers with child-support payments to make, your dick is lying to you. A new girlfriend, if you can find one, might wear a cast for you, but she’ll be doing it for the same reason your wife is willing to: in order to make your kinky ass happy.

*** I’m a straight man who enjoys the erotic “mummification” experience. My wife finds the process of wrapping me in cling film and duct tape extremely tedious, as it takes more than an hour and she doesn’t derive pleasure from it. So we decided to invest in a sleep sack, which will shorten the process considerably. I found a leather artisan on Etsy who makes them to order. During a video chat about sizing, the artisan made a reference to the “lucky man” who would be putting me in my sleep sack. I informed him I am straight. He apologized, saying that in his experience, it is mostly gay men

who invest in this type of gear. I was nevertheless offended by his assumption. Your thoughts? — Got Extremely Affronted Recently First thought: If gay men collapsed into puddles every time someone assumed we were straight, GEAR, we’d have to be reclassified as a liquid. Second thought: As a gay man, I’m sometimes annoyed when people assume I’m straight. But it’s not an unreasonable assumption, since most people are straight. It’s also rarely a malicious assumption. Similarly, GEAR, since all of the men who’ve commissioned this Etsy artisan to make them sleep sacks in the past have been gay, the assumption he made about you wasn’t unreasonable. And it’s hard to see malice in it. The offense you’ve taken, on the other hand, strikes me as both unreasonable and malicious; it’s unreasonable in that you would come crying to a queer person about something like this, and it’s malicious in that your reaction is so obviously rooted in homophobia (so what if some dude thought you might be gay?) and yet you came crying to a gay man about it. Final thought: Whereas a straight person who’s assumed to be gay can correct the record without fear, a gay person who’s assumed to be straight has to do a risk assessment first: Is this person going to freak out or get violent? Having to do those sorts of risk assessments all your life — starting in childhood with your own family — can take an emotional toll. So instead of being angry or offended by this experience, GEAR, you should be grateful that you can say, “Actually, I’m straight,” without having to worry about being punched in your stupid face or kicked out of your parents’ house.

On the Lovecast, get serious with comedian Cameron Esposito: savagelovecast.com.

mail@savagelove.net t@fakedansavage

| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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| clevescene.com | March 4 - 10, 2020

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OHIO’S PREMIER

SMOKE SHOP & TATTOO SUPPLY HEADQUARTERS!

OHIO BLOWN GLASS!

At At Each Each Location Location

Ohio’s Own!

COLLECTABLES!

◆Living Dead Dolls ◆Scream ◆Friday The 13th ◆Freddy Krueger ◆Predator ◆Alien ◆Pennywise ◆Halloween ◆Chucky

•VAPORIZERS•

LIFE SIZE!

Funko Pops! Funko Pops!

MUCH MORE!

Masks! Masks! Masks!

America’s #1 Incense

Fresh Sage!

FULL LINE OF CLEANSING PRODUCTS

CANVAS ART

Large Selection! YOUR ONE STOP TATTOO SUPPLY SHOP INKS

Large Selection CARTRIDGE VAPE BATTERIES

AUTHORIZED DEALER

CLEVELAND 4264 Pearl Rd. 216.749.3440

AKRON

1004 Kenmore Blvd. 330.753.3600

BARBERTON

MANSFIELD

EASTLAKE

GIRARD

COSHOCTON 523 Main St. 740.295.9277

STRONGSVILLE 19097 Drake Rd. 440.572.8287

NOWG! HIRIN

NEEDLES

32888 Vine St. 440.942.8668

Combos ◆ Singles Cartridge ◆ Piercing

AMHERST

Coil ◆ Rotary Cartridge Pen Machines

536 W. Tuscarawas 532 Park Ave. West 7511 Leavitt Rd. 419.522.1695 330.753.0500 440-984-7815 16 N. State St. 330.545.8131

Specialty Sets Also

ERIE, PA

326 Buffalo Rd. Coming Soon!

LORAIN

832 Broadway 440.242.4080

www.glasshouseohio.com

MACHINES

TATTOO KITS ARM RESTS ◆ CHAIRS POWER SUPPLIES TRANSFER MACHINES AFTERCARE TRANSFER PAPER STENCIL STUFF GREEN SOAP MADACIDE SANIDERM Much Much More!