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Matt and I went out to the Pink Flamingo Bowl on Washington Ave. last week, and were pretty impressed with what we found:

The place is pretty cool inside, with pink flamingos of various shapes and sizes adorning the walls, the bar, and several other places throughout the place - but somehow, Joe Edwards has managed to cover his new venture with pink flamingos - the very symbol of kitsch, and at the same time avoid a kitschy environment. The place is kind of classy, but relaxed feeling, and definitely aimed at the loft residents, people working downtown, and those with the common sense to avoid the overpriced bars closer to the stadium.

There’s 12 lanes of bowling with projection tvs (usually watching cartoon network when I pass by on my way to work) and surprisingly, the price of a game is about the same as any other bowling alley in town. Of course, you can rent out the lanes for an hour at a time as well (which on the weekend, wouldn’t be a bad idea, this place is usually PACKED Friday and Saturday).

Instead of the usual bowling alley fare, they have a pretty nice selection of sandwiches, appetizers, and pizza (at a fraction of the usual grease) and a well stocked (if upscale priced) bar. In addition to a pretty nice, moderately priced beer selection, they have an ever-changing selection of cocktails, and a list of aged rums as well. Of course, for me the crowning jewel at the bar was that they carry Lucid brand Absinthe (yes, real absinthe. Yes, it’s legal now. Yes, it’s actually real, google it if you don’t believe me), served in the french style at $9 a pop - now that’s a drink I don’t mind shoveling out some change for.

In all, it’s a pretty nice place if your downtown, and don’t mind spending a bit of money (but if you don’t want to lay down too much cash, they’ve got decent prices on pitchers of all your favorite st. louis beers as well). And as much as I’m downtown, I have a feeling this is going to become a new favorite spot of mine. (Hey, if it’s too pricey, they’ve also opened a new location of The Tin Can just down the street on Locust, and who can argue with that place?)

Even if you are the kind of person who is normally scared away by the thought of an evening of Shakespeare, you should really consider going to see Mustard Seed Theatre’s production of Measure for Measure.  This show is not to be missed!  Despite being one of Shakespeare’s most problematic plays - both because of its unbelievable plot contrivances and also because of its questionable portrayal of women - Deanna Jent does a marvelous job of keeping the play light and surprisingly hilarious without losing the deeper questions at issue.  In this production, the play has been relocated to a modern city, complete with drug dealers, prostitutes and karaoke bars.  This is Shakespeare at its raunchiest, but also Shakespeare at its most relevant.  At the heart of the story is the contrast between justice and mercy - a tension that deeply affects all of our relationships with friends, enemies, family, country, and even with God.  Images of political sex scandals (Eliot Spitzer, Bill Clinton, the list could go on and on) may be the first to come to mind.  But really, the play touches on every aspect of human corruption and forgiveness, both in the public arena and on the personal level.

I cannot be entirely objective in reviewing this play since my hubby, Jim Butz, has one of the main roles.  I happened to think that the entire show  was utterly fantastic.  But if you don’t want to take my word for it, then read this review or this review.  Apart from Jim Butz’s fabulous performance (I can’t help it), Jason Cannon as the Duke and Jennifer Theby as Isabella were both particularly outstanding.

If you need last minute plans for tonight, Thursday nights at 8:00pm are “Pay What You Can or Pay with a Can” - in other words, pay whatever you can afford, or just bring a canned good which will be given to a food pantry.  Otherwise, tickets are $20 Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm and Sundays at 2:00pm.

Measure for Measure runs through April 27th at Fontbonne University’s Theatre.

“Theatre should show, not tell.”

I don’t know if anyone wise ever said that, but maybe they should have. There is a certain style of playwriting that, in my view, comes closer to storytelling than to theatre. And Mary’s Wedding by Stephen Massicotte, currently being staged by the Echo Theatre Company, is one of those plays. Which is not necessarily a criticism, if you like that sort of thing. The play depicts a dreamscape in which two young Canadians fall in love in the early days of the Great War (that’s World War I for the historically challenged). Both characters, Charlie the farm boy, portrayed by Ben Nordstrom, and Mary the well-bred immigrant from England, portrayed by Magan Wiles, describe most of the action verbally, creating more of a picture in your mind rather than before your eyes. The result is mixed, as there are times when you are starkly aware that you are being talked to by an actor, whereas at other times you are completely absorbed and entranced by the story.

Despite the limits of the style, Nordstrom and Wiles are absolutely two of the finest actors St. Louis has to offer, and they do marvelously with the script given them. They make full use of the beautifully minimalist set, as well as clever and evocative use of their bodies. The chemistry between Charlie and Mary is believable and palpable. Nordstrom and Wiles both succeed in endearing themselves to the audience with a mixture of humor, sadness and the awkward delightfulness of new love. I was particularly charmed, and convinced, by the delicate Wiles’ portrayal of the crusty old Sergeant.

Mary’s Wedding runs through April 20^th at the Johnson Hall Theatre in the Third Baptist Church. Tickets can be purchased online, for more information call 314.225.4329.

Normally restaurant reviews are something I don’t normally do.  I feel compelled to though for the restaurant that I went to Friday night.

Although I’ve called St. Louis home for two years I had never experienced the Hill and the things it has to offer.  I never knew that there was an area of St. Louis that had so much red, white, and green.  The place of chosen interest for our evening was a restaurant known as Zia’s, a restaurant that has been around since 1984.

Zia’s is an Italian restaurant that tries to make you feel like honored guests instead of customers.  The entire night we were promptly attended to by a very polite server, although he forgot to bring butter when he served us bread.  What caught me was the aroma I got when I first sat down; it was as if I was in a house and I could smell our dinner already cooking.  The air was tantalizing with the smell of different pastas, which was very good, and the Cannelloni that I had was fantastic.  

Pasta is a food I don’t dabble in often, and it was fun to try something new. Unfortunately I felt like the food wasn’t adequate enough quantity wise to justify its cost.  The bill total was actually pretty decent for a nice meal for two, only about twenty-five dollars.  I just expect to get more when I pay more. Still my experience at Zia’s was a positive one and if you are in the mood for some great Italian, or a fun new place to take that significant other, then I definitely suggest giving Zia’s a try.  Being at Zia’s will feel like being right at home.

Wait? Who is this? Has Hwy61 been invaded? Is the very fabric of our pleasant little universe unraveling!

No, it’s just a new writer. My name is Zach Haugen, and it’s very nice to meet everyone. I am one of the new writers here on Highway 61. If you’re interested to learn more about me please visit the author’s page, otherwise I just need to say thank you to Matt and the other writers for letting me express what it is that I do.

Wednesday night I got the opportunity to see Ferry Corsten live at Dante’s on Olive Street.The show was a rare 18+ event, and although the club isn’t my normal scene the chance to see Ferry Corsten was too good to pass. I was optimistic going into the event, but coming out of it, well one word sums up my experience seeing Ferry Corsten at Dantes……bass.

The level of bass was so high much that it vibrated the folds on my jeans and punched me in the stomach on every beat. Normally big bass is what attracts crowds to an event like this, but the bass last night was simply over powering. It was so consistently over bearing that it drowned out any melody that Ferry was probably playing. After about an hour all I could hear, besides the bass, was the same techno over and over again. Now I’m very sure that he was playing different songs the entire time, but it all seemed to drown together in a big bass ocean.

Seeing Ferry at Dante’s was still an interesting experience to say the least. The club is a scene I don’t find myself in much, and I met some very fun people while I was there. Still, I paid $20.00 to stand on a dance floor in my Pac-Man munchies tee-shirt having my rib cage throttled the entire night like I was a small child. Needless to say it was an experience I hope to not repeat anytime soon.

Heartbreakingly beautiful - that’s how I would describe Rabbit Hole, the latest production in the Studio series of Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. This Pultizer Prize winning play by David Lindsay-Abaire depicts the unique suffering endured by parents who have lost a child. A topic like the death of a child can be risky; its difficult to avoid sentimentality or heavy-handedness; this production manages to pull it off with rawness and with grace. The old cliche “you’ll laugh, you’ll cry” is unapologetically true of this difficult story. One thing is for sure, if you allow yourself to be swept up into the story, you’ll leave exhausted and devastated - but also thoroughly satisfied.

The performances were quite impressive all around. Caroyln Swift was a powerhouse as the sassy Nat; she was hilarious without resorting to a caricature, and she conveyed deep sorrow without being chessy or pathetic. Victoria Adams-Zischke and Timothy McCracken were just marvelous as the grief-stricken parents - they mastered the whole range of emotions, from fear to rage to numbness with gritty reality. Ashley West at times needed to turn it down just a notch, but overall she was solid. Special congratulations to Adam King, student at the Webster Conservatory of Theatre Arts, for his finely-tuned performance.

This was not a perfect production. But its excellence far outweighs any flaws that I could point out. And frankly, when such fine performances are wedded to a sacred subject, nit-picking would feel petty and inappropriate.

Rabbit Hole runs through March 30th at the Emerson Studio Theatre in the Loretto-Hilton Center.

*As a reminder - students can get rush tickets on all Rep shows that haven’t sold out for $8.00 with a valid student ID one half-hour before the production begins. You can’t beat that deal with a stick.

Tonight, I had the pleasure of seeing Body Worlds 3 at the Science Center for the second time. After my first visit, during which I awkwardly tried to sketch some of the pieces (do I even refer to them as that? I guess it’s better than calling them corpses) I agreed with many of my friends in one respect - as interesting as it was, I probably wasn’t going to come back.

The first time I went, the place was crowded, photography wasn’t allowed, and although the people monitoring the exhibit repeatedly told people that they were free to move about, and that they weren’t in a line, I nonetheless received several dirty looks from people in the crowd who seemed to think that they were. On top of all that, the frat-boy idiots who entered ahead of me seemed more interested in giggling and pointing at the genitals of each person (loudly at that) than in actually looking at anything.

Why would I possibly want a second round at that? Well tonight, the Science Center hosted a special event - Body Worlds Artists Night! The admission was reduced, there were far less people meandering about the exhibit, and the good people at the Science Center encouraged all mediums to be brought and used - As I sat down (in the optional chairs they provided) to sketch out one of my favorites, the star warrior (a winking corpse with alternating bands of skin, exposed muscles, and bones) I found myself in the company of people using charcoal, pens, pencils, and even some setting up portable easels and painting. Live nude models patrolled the grounds as well, stopping and posing near the sculptures for 25 minute intervals, allowing people to compare the inner, and outer structure of the human body - not to mention the surreal spectacle of a bunch of naked people striking bizarre poses next to skinless corpses.

The best part is, that due to the success of the exhibit, the Science Center will be hosting a second Artists Night, on Tuesday February 19 from 7pm until 9pm. Tonight, I just walked in (and thanks to my art teacher, got in free) but if you want to reserve tickets ahead of time, you can here. Whether you’re a seasoned artist, a beginner, an amateur, or just someone looking for something different to do on a Tuesday night, this was a great time - although, as the last of us filed out of the building, I couldn’t help but notice how creepy that display is at night.

I went to the St. Louis Rep with high expectations, since Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose happens to be one of my most favorite plays, second perhaps only to Hamlet. And the famous film version starring Henry Fonda also happens to be one of my favorite films.  For those not familiar with the story, the entire show takes place inside a jury room as the jurors deliberate the verdict of a murder case involving a 16-year old kid accused of stabbing his father in the chest. What seems to be an open-shut case turns out to be a bit more complicated when one juror stands alone in doubting the boy’s guilt.

It is hard to tell what makes this show so fascinating and enjoyable. Is it the sleuthing, worthy of Sherlock Holmes or CSI? Or is it the psychological drama which so poignantly reveals human nature at its best, worst, and hardest to pin down? Perhaps its the brilliant and natural dialogue which effortlessly and efficiently presents us with 12 unique characters, not 12 caricatures. Either way, this show is taut enough to keep you interested, but its intensity varies enough so as not to leave you exhausted. It will leave you impressed and thinking hard about justice, doubt, prejudice and the deception of appearances.

So, as I said, I had some pretty high expectations. And I am happy to say that for the most part, The St. Louis Rep’s production met those expectations. The set was just right - a drab and ordinary jury room, without ornamentation or distraction, made for the perfect blank canvas. Kudos need to go to the director as well for the astounding choreography needed for this show. Maneuvering twelve men around the stage in a way that is both natural and fluid and fits with the dialogue is no small feat. However, most of the credit goes to the actors who all did a superb job in bringing these characters to life; with the exception, that is, of Juror #8, played by Jeff Talbot. It is unfortunate that the most pivotal character of the play was the least convincing; Talbot’s acting style was stiff and unnatural. He never seemed to actually ground himself in the action, but instead remained above it - reciting memorized lines and gesturing dramatically rather than genuinely interacting with his fellow jurors. Too bad. The rest of the actors were just wonderful, most notably Steve Brady as the bigoted Juror #10, Richmond Hoxie as the logical Juror #4, Dane Knell as the elderly Juror #9, Jerry Vogel as the German-American Juror #11 and Gary Wayne Barker as the prim Juror #2.

Twelve Angry Men, presented by The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, runs now through March 2, 2008 at the Loretto-Hilton Center.

By now you’ve probably heard about a flash game from the Missouri Democratic Party named “Matt Blunt: Document Destroyer” which serves equal parts parody and political communication.  You might have even played it or even passed along the link yourself.  So instead of providing a response to it’s political context (since there are enough blogs to cover that), we thought it might be appropriate to review the game as just that - a game review.  So I dug out my old issues of GamePro magazine, did a little extended play, and tried to give this game the objective analysis this exciting new kind of political communication strategy warrants.

Graphics - At first glance this game could be described as being realistic enough, using great photo scans of Governor Blunt over a fixed-perspective background, with an impressive use of scaling effects to give a depth to an otherwise boring background.  Boring might be the word to describe the cubicles that the governor pops up from, and although it might have been distracting it would have been nice to see some better detailed background.  And although it does limit load time and ensure greater compatibility, it would have been nice to throw in a few more frames of animation into what largely amounts to little more than Gubernatorial whack-a-mole.  Why introduce reaction shots that give the illusion of animation at all? 
Score:

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As a special follow-up on a review written by our own Gabe Bullard, here’s a short clip from last Saturday’s They Might Be Giants performance at the Pageant to show you just how much fun was had at said rock concert. 

Seen here performing “The Guitar,” the band had a little fun with the enthusiastic audience seen here. You might like to check out a clip of “Particle Man” with a Buddy Ebsen reference.

Instead of sharing our own photos of the show, we thought it’d be fun to pass along some properly tagged pictures we found on Flickr.  Using the machine tags from Last.FM and Upcoming is a fun way to organize the events you’ve attended and share public pictures, not to mention making a much better slideshow on FlickR than just using our photos.  And if you were there too, please feel free to pass along your photos through that channel or at least share with us here in the comments.