Sunday, September 3
Zombie Movie Night/Canned Food Drive
The Royale, 3132 S. Kingshighway
5 canned/jarred food items for admission, 21+, 6 p.m., 1-888-495-4052, zombiehunters.org/royale.php
Zombie movies and a canned food drive? Shit, dawg, they go together like PB and its good friend, J. And I'm evidently not the only person who thinks so, seeing as our local Zombie Squad has organized just such an event, the focus primarily being to restock the shelves of Feed My People's food pantry, which took a major hit after the July storm and subsequent power outages that had so many local residents scrambling for the basics—you know, food, shelter, the whole Maslowian bit? So grab some nonperishables (and please, don't embarrass yourself, bring stuff you'd actually want to eat, especially if it's high in protein, e.g. beans, canned meat, PB, etc.) and come on down to enjoy the flicks.
(Posted by Amanda)
Wednesday, September 6
Tastes for Tunes: A Dining Event
Restaurants all over town (but you should join us at Van Goghz Martini Bar & Bistro, 3200 Shenandoah)
All ages, all day depending on restaurant (6-10 p.m. at VG), 314-210-7764, http://kdhx.org/tastes/
Honestly, some things are easier'n' falling off a log: here's one. Step one: go out for breakfast, lunch or dinner today. Step two: there ain't no step two! Done! You've just supported KDHX, that fine community media juggernaut that brings you FM 88.1 and channels 21 and 22 on city cable. That's because a boatload of our best St. Louis restaurants have agreed that whatever you and the rest of the community diners spend at their establishments on that day, a portion of the proceeds will go directly to KDHX to support their operations. I mean, really—in what world is this not perfect? And for a *really* fun time, join your pals from The Commonspace at Van Goghz Martini Bar & Bistro, where we'll be co-hosting with the hosts of "The Wire" and the good peeps from the Tower Grove Farmers' Market. Mmm, martinis...
(Posted by Amanda)
Thursday, September 14
Art Lecture/Exhibit Preview: Tara Donovan
Saint Louis Art Museum, One Fine Arts Drive in Forest Park
All ages, 7 p.m., 314-721-0072, www.slam.org
American artist Tara Donovan successfully straddles that line-in-the-art-sand I often encounter, right between, "*This* is art? Shit, my cat could make that," and, "Oh, that is so, so cool." Her sculptural installation pieces take (generally) large quantities of very prosaic materials (think straws, toothpicks, cash register tape) and transform them into tactile, large-scale structures that, viewed as one, start to resemble biological forms like clouds and plant cellular structures. Her work was recently featured in ARTNews magazine, and the exhibit here should be quite a draw for the Art Museum. Donovan speaks tonight, with a preview following her talk.
(Posted by Amanda)
Saturday, September 16
Reading/Signing: "A Recipe for Failure: A Year of Reform and Chaos in the St. Louis Public Schools," by Marilyn Ayres-Salamon
Borders, 1519 S. Brentwood Blvd.
Free, 2 p.m., 314-918-8189
Ayres-Salamon, (briefly an 8th grade teacher in the SLPS), pretty much tells you right there in the title what she thinks of the tenure of the Roberti/Alvarez & Marsal takeover, so know that going in. She sums up her reasons for writing the book this way:
"In this book, I've tried to provide the reader with an account of my experiences, to bridge the gap between the abstract to a more concrete understanding of the needs and challenges of urban education. I've also attempted to illustrate the impact that School Board and administrative decisions can have—both positively and negatively—on students and teachers. Many people don't understand that public education is not, and cannot be, viewed in a purely business perspective."
Regardless of your perspective on the current state of SLPS, this should be a lively discussion.
(Posted by Amanda)
Saturday, September 16 and Sunday, September 17
Earthways Energy & Recycling Festival
Earthways Center, 3617 Grandel Square in Grand Center
Free, all ages, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., 314-577-0220, www.earthwayscenter.org
Well, it's official: Labor Day has come and gone, and even though I'm still wearing white (fashion rules be damned!), even I can feel that rustle in the air, that "get serious" vibe that always accompanies fall, shorter days, back-to-school time.
So, here's an idea: why not have some fun while you're getting serious? Say, about saving energy, recycling, living a little greener and so on. This weekend's festival at the spiffy Earthways Home will help you do just that, with displays and demonstrations by renewable energy experts, art/craft projects with an energy-conscious bent for the kiddos, and — stop the presses! — "recycled-content products and fashions." Alert the fashionistas.
This weekend also sees the return of the wildly popular "compact fluorescent light bulbs for 99 cents" sale, and in these tight times, who couldn't use that? Extra points if you arrive in your hybrid.
(Posted by Amanda)
Saturday, September 23
Strange Folks Arts & Crafts Festival
O'Fallon Community Park, O'Fallon, IL
Free admission, all ages, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., 618-409-5005, www.strangefolkfestival.com
There is so much to like about this event, at least based on what we know thus far: first, it's called the "Strange Folk" festival. I like that. Secondly, the pitch for participants said, in part, "if you are an artist or crafter that tends not to fit in at a typical 'country' craft fair, then you'll fit right in at Strange Folk!" Third, the afternoon features an amateur fashion designer showcase called the "Fierce Suburban Fashion Show." (That's at 2 p.m.) Finally, there are enough righteous STL designers whose work I love (Tiny Montgomery, Beqi, Mail Order Bride Vintage, St. Louis Craft Mafia, I'm lookin' at you) that I'm willing to cross that mighty river.
I'm just telling you right now: if you're on my gift-giving list, you're probably getting something from here. Support some handmade already!
(Posted by Amanda)
Sunday, September 24
Free Candy, with Amanda & Julia!
Hartford Coffee Company, 3974 Hartford (@ Roger)
Free!, for maturish (chronologically speaking) folk, 7 p.m., 314-772-5947, amanda@thecommonspace.org
This month's outrageously spectacular guest lineup for the fall return of Free Candy, everyone's favorite live, non-broadcast, coffee-shop talk show, rocks the house.
Try this on for size:
*David Robertson, principal conductor and musical director of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, gettin' all classical with us
*Charles Henderson, of the St. Louis Scottish Games, who will wear an actual kilt and submit to our "Scot or Not?" barrage
*Special musical stylings by rockin' guest musician Jesse Irwin, a modern-day troubadour if we ever saw one
Plus, all the patented hijinks and banter you've come to expect from your
co-hostesses with the, uh, mostess...es? Come eat our candy (shout out to September's Honorary Sugar Daddy, the Tower Grove Farmers' Market and Harvest Fest!), bring $12 for a sweet
t-shirt, and bring a friend. Admission is extra-free for anyone wearing a kilt.
(Posted by Amanda)
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Book Reading/Signing: "In Praise of the Needlewoman: Embroiderers, Knitters Lacemakers and Weavers in Art," by Gail Carolyn Sirna
Headquarters Branch of St. Louis County Library, 1640 S. Lindbergh
Free, all ages, 7 p.m., 314-994-3300, www.slcl.org
The Friends of St. Louis County Library and the American Needlepoint Guild will host an evening with Sirna, whose new book examines the common iconography of women engaged in the domestic textile pursuits throughout the ages: they were a favorite subject of painters from Vermeer and Dali to Mary Cassatt. With the revival of many of the home ec trades, an examination of the history and symbolism of these tranquil scenes seems quite timely.
(Posted by Amanda)
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
June 2006
May 2006
April 2006
March 2006
RFT Top Picks
STLtoday Picks
Upcoming.org
