Dessert Divas

Photo courtesy of Barbuzzo by Emily Kovach A few bites of a well-composed, balanced, exciting dessert is how all dinners should end.Sadly, lots of restaurants phone in an obligatory dessert menu with a smattering of mundane items that make it all too easy to say, “No, really, I shouldn’t.” We want desserts whose siren song

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To save water, forget about turning the faucet off when you brush your teeth. Turn off your air conditioner

Illustration by Corey Schumann Water, Water Everywhere by Jerry Silberman Question: How can I reduce my personal water consumption to protect the environment? The Right Question: How can I reduce my energy consumption to protect fresh water? Kayaking down the Schuylkill a couple of weeks ago, in the zone of cool air just above the

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3 mins read

Fringe Festival: Can we find ourselves in the forest?

Photo courtesy of Plate 3 Photography Into the Woods by Heather Shayne Blakeslee At the Fringe Festival two years ago, Birds on a Wire Dance Theatre offered audiences an abstract performance piece that retold the story of Little Red Riding Hood via a duet with dancer Kate Abernathy and cellist Rachel Icenogle.  Wire’s artistic director

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1 min read

‘Pandæmonium’ explores a hellish landscape of our own making

Photo courtesy of Lars Jan Alone, Together interview by Heather Shayne Blakeslee In “Paradise Lost,” John Milton’s epic poem about the fall of man, he envisions the mythical city of Pandæmonium as the capital of hell, a mansion built on a lake of fire by the demon Mulciber.  For Philadelphia choreographer and dancer Nichole Canuso,

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2 mins read

A dance company explores our heart of darkness in a Center City bar

Photo courtesy of Bradley’s Bucks Rebirth of the Jungle by Heather Shayne Blakeslee Bradley’s Bucks—an all-male dance troupe that has been offering up semiregular performances this past year at bar and burlesque hub Franky Bradley’s—makes its Fringe Festival debut with “Jungle.” The production will explore the rebirth of the jungle in a post-apocalyptic ecosystem where—after

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A most American emblem arrives on Philly’s shores—a sign that we’re a river city on the rise

Illustration by Carter Mulcahey The Eagle Has Landed interview by Heather Shayne Blakeslee If you’ve just arrived in Philadelphia, you might not know that along our famed Boathouse Row, athletes were once advised to have tetanus shots to safely compete. Industrial waste and municipal sewage sullied our waters, and you were more likely to see

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6 mins read

What advocates can learn from artists

Story Time by Heather Shayne Blakeslee Once upon a time, I met Stephen King.  Perhaps more accurately, I once had an awkward exchange with Stephen King. It was a brief encounter at a fundraiser in New York, and I’m not sure which of us was more uncomfortable during the 20 seconds we spoke. What I

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