Pittsburgh Grooveline: Dance parties at ALL SUMMR, Spirit, and more (July 18-24)
Each week, the Pittsburgh City Paper compiles a list of Pittsburgh dance parties for you and your crew to bust loose to the best bangers, EDM, pop hits, and more. (All events are 21 and over unless otherwise stated.) Sat., July 20 Junction: ALL SUMMR Day Party. 3-10 p.m. 1717 Fifth Ave., Uptown. facebook.com/allsummr – The monthly…
Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the moon landing with movies, a dance party, and other local events
You may have heard that July 20 is the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing in 1969. There are plenty of movies, TV shows, and even Oreos to commemorate the event. Check out these local events to celebrate the moon in all her glory. The Day We Walked On The Moon at Heinz History Center…
As Pa. state schools freeze tuition hikes, Pittsburgh universities raise rates again
Pennsylvanian students graduate with the highest debt of any students in the nation. Last week, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education decided to freeze tuition at the 24 state-owned universities. These are mostly smaller colleges dotted throughout the state, but they include the nearby California University of Pennsylvania and Slippery Rock University. Tuition for…
Transient: First 100 Days of Trump projects transgender voices in a dangerous time
In the years since President Trump took office, LGBTQ activists and civil rights groups have protested his administration’s efforts to roll back protections for transgender people, including banning them from military service and targeting a part of the Affordable Care Act designed to protect transgender people from discrimination in health care and insurance coverage. But Mark…
Rosa Villa’s longstanding building on Pittsburgh’s North Side comes down
The Rosa Villa building, located across the street from The Andy Warhol Museum on North Side, is currently being demolished to become a pedestrian park. At least temporarily. “This summer, The Warhol will be refreshing parts of its building exterior and surrounding campus,” says Charlene Bidula, communications manager for the museum. Future plans for the…
Pa. Supreme Court rules in favor of Pittsburgh’s paid sick day legislation
Most private employers within the city limits Pittsburgh are now required to provide some paid sick days to all of their workers. Today, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld Pittsburgh’s Paid Sick Leave ordinance that passed in 2015. The ordinance, sponsored by Pittsburgh City Councilor Corey O’Connor (D-Squirrel Hill), required that private employers provide up to…
Pop-up no more: Pigeon Bagels opens a permanent home in Squirrel Hill
Gab Taube, owner of Pigeon Bagels, finally has a kitchen of her own. This week, the popular bagel shop officially opened the doors of its new storefront in Squirrel Hill. Pigeon Bagels was started by Taube in 2017 (Taube means “pigeon” in German). For two years, she ran the pop-up shop and wholesale bakery from…
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly says he is a person of color because he is white
The story swirling around Washington D.C. right now is about President Donald Trump and his racist tweets directed toward four progressive Democratic lawmakers, all women of color. But some of his allies, like U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Butler), are trying to take heat off the president, but causing controversies for themselves. On Sunday, Trump claimed they…
Video Tour: Thunderbird Café & Music Hall officially reopens this weekend
After almost three years of renovations, Thunderbird Café & Music Hall is officially set to reopen this weekend. Before the doors open, take a mini video tour of Thunderbird with City Paper’s photographer Jared Wickerham, below. Upon entering the venue, visitors will find an industrial-looking bar area, which will be open every day regardless of whether…
A survey of Mayor Bill Peduto’s nicknames, as seen in responses to Pittsburgh Post-Gazette stories
Earlier this week, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette announced a change to its comment policy, now allowing only paid subscribers to leave comments on its online stories. While there are a number of possibly interesting reasons for the change — to elevate discourse, to encourage subscription, to ease the workload of a web editor — all I could immediately think…
Spirit working to launch the first phase of its Rooftop Garden project
In the few short years since it took over the former Moose Lodge in Lawrenceville, Spirit has become a cultural force as a local destination for live music, DJ dance parties, art, and other events. There’s also its Slice Island pizza shop, brunch, and cocktails made with fresh ingredients, all aspects the venue hopes to…
How many hot dogs is too many hot dogs? Probably this many
If you were to have a barbecue for you and your friends, how many hot dogs would you buy? How many Cheddarwursts would you need? Let’s assume you would be serving sides and hamburgers, too. I would buy a package of eight for eight people. But to be safe, I consulted the experts: Hot Dog…
Cooling centers and other places in Pittsburgh to stay out of the heat
Now that it’s the middle of summer, the blazing heat and humidity is as apparent as ever. While the heat can be a welcome change from the brutal cold of winter, it can also be dangerous, especially for vulnerable populations. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, extreme heat usually causes the most…
Thousands of Allegheny County residents want air-quality issues taken more seriously
Environmental group PennEnvironment delivered more than 6,000 petitions to Allegheny County Council today, demanding that its members work with the county health department to address concerns over the region’s air quality. The Pittsburgh area consistently receives F-grades from the American Lung Association, and a recent study estimated that the metro area had the fourth most…
How Deutschtown Music Festival helped this North Sider learn to love the neighborhood even more
The house we almost purchased in Pittsburgh’s Deutschtown neighborhood seven years ago now has a row of flowers out front, a cat in the window, and a small crowd entering the building next door, growing larger by the minute as the chords of a guitar begin to echo throughout the North Side block. The house…
Lynn Cullen Live – 7/16/19
Video Archive This upcoming election is looking like it’s going to be a nasty one, and we’re still over a year away. That’s the first topic of discussion today. Lynn is also talking about the new book ‘The Volunteer’ by Jack Fairweather. It’s the story of Witold Pilecki, who volunteered to infiltrate Auschwitz in it’s…
Concert Announcements: The Menzingers, The Japanese House, and more
Stay up-to-date with your favorite artists and musicians coming to Pittsburgh. Each week, Pittsburgh City Paper will bring you the most recent concert announcements so you never miss a show. Austin Lucas. Thu., Aug. 8. Club Cafe, South Side. NEW SHOW ANNOUNCEMENT: w/ @AustinlucasIND and @northerngoldus. @ClubCafeLive. #Pittsburgh. Presented by @opusoneprod #NewMusicMonday #NewMusic #NewMusicAlert pic.twitter.com/Yq4n5R8PGY…
Revisiting Pittsburgh’s brief flirtation with Amazon on this, the blessed Day of Prime
Good Prime to you, fellow Primethians. Is thine cart full of lightning deals, thine two-day shipping free, thine watchlist brimming with multiple seasons of Bosch? Then let us raise our Fire Sticks in celebration! If that super sarcastic opening paragraph wasn’t enough of a clue, it’s Amazon Prime Day, and people are once again feeling…
Photos: Circus Arts at the Friday Night Market
Our friends at Iron City Circus Arts and the Pittsburgh Circus Arts Collaborative, who will be performing at Pittsburgh City Paper’s Best of Pittsburgh party on Thu., Aug. 8 at Nova Place, gave us a little taste of their talents during the Friday Night Market in Downtown’s Market Square. Aerialists, jugglers, stilt-walkers, and fire-breathers showed off for…
Pittsburgh political pundit Salena Zito downplays Trump’s racist remarks because of ‘polarization’
Former Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reporter Salena Zito catapulted in the media world following the election of President Donald Trump. She was christened the “Trump-voter whisperer” by some, since many of her stories written before the 2016 election showcased how many people in Rust Belt areas were supporting Trump, even if those areas had historically backed Democrats. Since…
Mattress Factory extends hours as an alternative to the ‘weekend rush’
The Mattress Factory, a popular installation art museum on Pittsburgh’s North Side, will offer extended hours on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings beginning Wed., Aug. 7. New hours on Sundays will be 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and new hours on Wednesdays will be 10 a.m.–8 p.m. The MF Café will also feature extended hours beginning Aug.…
Concert photos: Soccer Mommy and Kevin Krauter at Mr. Smalls Theatre
Deemed an ‘Artist You Need To Know’ by Rolling Stone in 2018, Sophie Allison, better known as Soccer Mommy, takes bedroom pop in an alt-rock direction by layering soft, dreamy vocals over clean hooks and harmonically-rich guitar. On Fri., July 12, alternative folk singer Kevin Krauter opened for Allison and her full acoustic band at…
Everything good to do this week in Pittsburgh
You’ll wonder what your damage is when you see The Theatre Factory’s production of Heathers: The Musical, a live show based the ultra-dark 1989 comedy about teen angst, high school, and murder. Continues through Sun., July 21. 8 p.m. 235 Cavitt Ave., Trafford. $18-20. thetheatrefactory.org Tue., July 16 [Event] View work by more than 40 artists…
Lynn Cullen Live – 7/15/19
Video Archive A discussion of racism in the United States is how Lynn is starting out the week. Trump’s tweet over the weekend calling for the progressive women of color in the congress to go back to their countries is part of it. Three out of the four congresswomen this tweet was directed at were…
Kinetic Theatre’s Scapino is an intense, comedic trip into the world of modern crime
The amount of energy onstage in Kinetic Theatre’s Scapino could power the city of Naples, Fla. for a decade. Every member of the eight-person cast is operating at 100 percent intensity, 100 percent of the time, delivering complex plots, marriage proposals, and reams of exposition at a pace way, way above the speed limit. Is…
Peter Pan has moments of magic, but a ‘remarkably unmemorable’ score holds it back from truly shining
It only makes sense that Pittsburgh CLO is offering half-price tickets to children aged 3-14 during select performances of Peter Pan. J.M. Barrie’s tale of the boy who wouldn’t grow up has become one of the most famous stories ever told about the magic of imagination and childhood — an exhilarating adventure story for children…
Bill Peduto and hundreds of Pittsburghers call for closing Berks immigrant detention center
More than 500 people gathered in Schenley Plaza last night to protest the treatment of immigrants by U.S. immigration officials, as part of the national Lights For Liberty protest efforts. Signs were held up by protesters, critical of the treatment of child migrants held in border patrol facilities, and of the Trump-announced raids to be…
Thirty years ago, a man named Bruce opened a local ice cream parlor
Today, Bruster’s Real Ice Cream turns 30. On July 13, 1989, Bruce Reed opened the first Bruster’s in Bridgewater, Pa., just outside of Pittsburgh. It wasn’t long before Reed’s single ice cream shop took off and expanded across the nation. Now, with 200 shops across the United States and internationally serving about 25,000 customers a…
The best places to celebrate National French Fry Day
Saturday is National French Fry Day. Don’t let the holiday pass you by without a taste of a crispy, freshly-fried potato. If you’re looking for the perfect plate of fries to celebrate, check out one of these five spots we love, serving up some of the city’s best fries. Ba-Co Ba-Co, one of Smallman Galley’s…
Pennsylvania’s hottest Twitter account right now is … the state treasury department
It’s time to follow the money. While Pennsylvania State Treasurer Joe Torsella has been on Twitter for a while, the new official Twitter for the Pennsylvania Treasury Department was launched just a few weeks ago, and it is growing fast. Since launching, @PATreasury has attracted attention and hundreds of new followers with an informal tweeting…
Catch work by Asian Pacific Islander American artists at July 12 Downtown Gallery Crawl
A new exhibit in the offices of the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council highlights a group of artists that have been historically underrepresented in the city. We Are Here: Asian Pacific Islander American Artists in Pittsburgh came together after the exhibit’s curator Karen Lue pulled together a show for the Lunar New Year at Everyday Cafe…
Pittsburgh-themed roller coasters that would have been better than the Steel Curtain
“Steel Curtain,” Kennywood’s new Pittsburgh Steelers-themed roller coaster, officially opens to the public this Saturday as part of its new “Steelers Country” section, a collaboration with the city’s beloved football team. But, in a town that already bleeds black and gold and incorporates the Steelers into nearly every aspect of our lives already, I can’t…
Steel Curtain roller coaster to open Saturday at Kennywood
If Kennywood fans are willing to forgive the local amusement park for its recent fiasco involving Hunt’s Ketchup, then they are in for a treat on Saturday. As part of the park’s new Pittsburgh Steelers themed section, a brand new roller coaster called the Steel Curtain is debuting, and there is already significant buzz. She…
Allegheny Land Trust wants to transform a former country club into community space
Over 80 years after its construction in 1931, the Churchill Valley Country Club, a long-time golf destination and events venue between Churchill and Penn Hills, closed in 2013. Now the Allegheny Land Trust (ALT) is trying to transform the site into a permanently protected community green space. The local land conservation nonprofit acquired an exclusive…
A list of Trump’s ‘broken promises,’ as told by presidential candidate Kirsten Gillibrand
The first anti-Trump campaign ad of the 2020 presidential cycle is on Pittsburgh televisions now. The 30-second spot was produced by the presidential campaign of U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York), but her face isn’t shown until the end. Instead, the ad highlights the “broken promises” President Donald Trump made on the campaign trail in…
Common brings his ‘Let Love’ Tour to Pittsburgh’s Roxian Theatre this August!
Academy Award, Golden Globe, Emmy and Grammy-winning artist, actor and activist, Common continues to break down barriers with a multitude of critically acclaimed, diverse roles, and continued success at the box office. For the past few years, Common has dedicated countless hours and has been deeply engaged in social justice and advocacy work around mass…
Pittsburgh region wrecked by floods, more possible as evening storms approach
Early morning storms have led to a deluge of storm water hitting multiple communities throughout Pittsburgh. Communities like Millvale, Etna and Sharpsburg were particularly hard hit. According to Zaheen Hussain, Millvale sustainability coordinator at New Sun Rising, the floods that hit Millvale today were very similar to last year, and notes there could be a…
Anxiety will be added as a qualifying condition for Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana program
Anxious people, rejoice. Pennsylvania’s Department of Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine has announced she is adding anxiety to the list of qualifying conditions for the commonwealth’s medical marijuana programs. Levine also announced that Tourette syndrome will be added. Both conditions will take effect Sat., July 20. “After careful review of the medical literature available about…
Lynn Cullen Live – 7/11/19
Video Archive Laughter is the best medicine. In times like these we must be sure to find the funny, smile, and take care of yourself. That’s the first topic Lynn is focusing on today. She is also talking about ICE’s multi-city round-up of undocumented immigrants planned for Sunday. It is said that some families are…
Lynn Cullen Live – 7/10/19
Video Archive How the Democrats are handling working with Trump is the first topic up for discussion today. A tweet thread on the Democrat leaders playing defense is what brought this to Lynn’s mind. In good news, the University of Texas Austin has decided that students from families who make less than $65,000 can attend…
Free Will Astrology
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Vantablack is a material made of carbon nanotubes. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, it is the darkest stuff on the planet. No black is blacker than Vantablack. It reflects a mere 0.036 percent of the light that shines upon it. Because of its unusual quality, it’s ideal for…
Meet the person responsible for organizing The Warhol’s objects
Name: Erin Byrne, Highland Park Work: Archivist, The Andy Warhol Museum What does an archivist do? A myriad of different activities, especially here because we’re a single-artist museum. As opposed to something like the complete records of Lyndon Johnson [and] papers from his presidential work, we have Warhol’s paints, his record collection, his book collection,…
Apollo 11 documentary Armstrong is perfect for space fans and classrooms
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, the NASA mission that allowed the first man to walk on the moon. A new documentary, Armstrong, commemorates the feat with the story of Neil Armstrong, the astronaut who first stepped foot on the moon’s surface. Using archival footage, interviews with colleagues and family, and never-before-seen…
Daughters Leila and Dalel carry on 47-year legacy of Mediterranean family-style menu
Agnes and Mikhail Khalil opened the first Khalil’s in 1972. Five years later, the couple purchased a building on Baum Boulevard and called it Khalil’s II; a few years later, Khalil’s III was born. Forty-seven years after the first restaurant was opened, only location No. 2 is still in operation, but judging from the state…
Weird Paul discusses first album in six years, Lit AF
On July 16, the first solo Weird Paul Petroskey album in six years rears its bowl-cut shaped head. Throughout the 16 tracks on the new album, LIT AF, Petroskey’s coy lyrics and playful song titles (“Uber On Over;” “Alive In the Body Bag;” “Poptarded”) washes over a mix of lo-fi instrumentals ranging from rap to…
Why so few Pittsburghers want Mayor Peduto’s proposed autonomous shuttle
At a June meeting, dozens of residents showed up to hear updates on a city proposal that would ferry autonomous shuttles through Oakland, Greenfield, and Hazelwood. By and large, residents were skeptical of the autonomous-vehicle proposal. Several of them sported buttons reading, “Not Sold on AV.” Public-transit advocates think the city’s money and effort would…
Two of Mister Rogers’ short pieces to be performed at Winchester Thurston School
In a small rehearsal space at a Shadyside school, bodies are veering and staggering from one side of the room to the other, as if being thrown by a strong wind. They fling themselves with abandon, teetering off kilter, hopping from right foot to left. Some have bananas — one, two, or a basketful. And…
Six must-see metal bands at the Deutschtown Music Festival
An all-weekend street-music festival is always a great idea, unless you’re a metalhead, in which case the family-minded events are seldom tailored for your tastes. Unless you consider the Deutschtown Music Festival, whose organizers catered the programming with heshers in mind. There is a great assortment of bands to headbang your way through the weekend-long…
Steel City Kitty brings worldwide burlesque performers to Pittsburgh
When Kat De Lac chooses performers for her Steel City Kitty Burlesque & Variety Show, she looks for more than the usual striptease-inspired acts. Doing so requires going outside of Pittsburgh and, in many cases, the country, as De Lac, a self-described “international showgirl,” keeps an eye out for the best talent while traveling for…
Planning Commission is demanding better architecture for the Strip District
The best time to plant a tree, so the saying goes, is twenty years ago. The time to start demanding good architecture in the Strip District is around the same. Maybe the number of years is slightly different, but there is a profusion of recent construction that really lacks what you might expect of the…
Swissvale resident pens book on one of the most criticized poets, songwriters, actors, and performers of the 20th century
Remember Rod McKuen? If you do, you are likely over 50 and fall into one of two categories: 1. You’re thrilled someone remembers one of the most popular figures of the 1960s and 1970s in Barry Alfonso’s biography, A Voice of the Warm: The Life of Rod McKuen (Backbeat Books). 2. You’re wondering why there…
Where have decades of American “tolerance” gotten us?
You’ll forgive me for applying the over-used technique of using a dictionary definition for an introduction, but you just have to read this: Tolerance, a noun, is described by Merriam-Webster dictionary online as “the capacity to endure what is difficult or disagreeable without complaining.” “The capacity to endure …” — the hardship of dealing with…
Rolling Coal, a two-man show exploring masculinity in rural America
It didn’t take long for newcomer Tina Dillman to integrate herself into the Pittsburgh arts scene. After moving here from Buffalo in December 2018 to attend an arts writing residency hosted by Associated Artists of Pittsburgh and Bunker Projects, she quickly began networking with local arts professionals and attending various cultural events throughout the city. …
Waterparks, animatronic musicals, serviceable restaurants, perfection
I have been to Great Wolf Lodge twice. I had not heard of this indoor waterpark/hotel until about a year ago, when my wife suggested we take the kids. With almost 20 locations across the country, the resort is billed as “North America’s Indoor Water Parks Resort Hotel.” Two weeks ago, we took our second…
Block party-style birthday celebration to be held on what would have been Antwon Rose II’s 19th birthday.
Antwon Rose II, who was shot and killed by then-East Pittsburgh police officer, Michael Rosfeld, in June 2018, would be turning 19 on July 12. On that day, two local organizations are throwing the Antwon Rose II Community Birthday Celebration in Hawkins Village, the neighborhood where Rose grew up. Hosted by Young Black Motivated Kings…
Rail against the current war on women by sharing your story
Guest column by Lisa Cunningham “Planned Parenthood was an invaluable resource for me as I was discovering and exploring my sexuality. Being able to find unbiased, evidence-based information on how to have safe sex as a queer woman, specifics on what queer sex even could be, and links to other womens’ experiences made me feel…
