Month: July 2019

Categories
Politics Politics Beat Blog

Strickland Opens Up

CREDIT: JB

JB

Mayor Srickland in the center of supporters (top) and being buttonholed by them (bottom)

On Tuesday afternoon, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, freshly introduced by School Board member Michelle McKissick (who in turn had been introduced by County Commission chair Van Turner) took a look around the crowd that surrounded him on the vacant floor of the former Spin City on Poplar Avenue and professed himself “humbled to see so many people from all walks of life.”

That was how Strickland formally opened his 2019 reelection campaign, clearly trying to present himself as a man for all seasons and factions.

The Mayor promised the crowd “a few words,” which turned out to be a semi-lengthy recounting of what he considers his accomplishments over the 3 ½-year period of his tenure so far.

These included an accelerated hiring of police officers, a doubling of the city’s paving budget, and the use of “data” to “drive government decisions.” He would quickly amend that formulation to “data and good people,” working in a brag on city employees.

Apropos that matter of data, Strickland served up more stats, claiming : a quickening of the city’s 911 response to an average of 7 seconds per call; an enhanced survival rate at the city’s animal shelter; an increased MWBE percentage (rate of contracting with firms owned by women and minorities); a 90 percent increase of summer jobs for youth; 22,000 new jobs in 3 ½ years; etc., etc.

“All of that without a tax increase,” Strickland proclaimed promising more via his administration’s Memphis 3.0 growth plan. “Memphis does have momentum,” he said.

The Mayor cited some encouraging appraisals from the Bloomberg organization of Manhattan and got a rise out of his crowd of supporters when, in boasting the rate of job growth in Memphis, he said it surpassed that in such other major cities as Houston, Dallas, and “a small town east of here called Nashville.”

There was more such upbeat boasting, some of it borrowed from other governmental jurisdictions, as when Strickland cited state government’s provision of free education at community colleges and tech schools.

All in all, the Mayor’s presentation was rhetorically lean and in line with his oft-stated concept of his job as essentially that of handling the “basics.”

He is making a point of running on his record, and it will be up to his several opponents to question his data and his conclusions and to offer arguments of their own as alternatives. At least two of them — County Commissioner Tami Sawyer and former Mayor Willie Herenton — seem prepared to make such an effort, but they are both well behind with respect to one important piece of data not mentioned by Strickland on Tuesday.

That would be in the matter of campaign budgets, where the incumbent Mayor has an amount on hand close to one million dollars. That is one “basic” that will be hard to counter.

Categories
Music Record Reviews

Nonconnah’s Elevator Music: Next Floor, Apocalypse

Listening to Dead Roses, Digged Up Zombies, Broken Pieces Of Diamonds, Live Cats, by Memphis’ own Nonconnah, I imagine it as background music in one of those hypothesized elevators to space. Such a technological achievement would surely be the perfect combination of the mundane and the mind-blowing, a pedestrian concept that nevertheless would shake our very faith in what’s real or possible. Taking snatches of everyday sounds, blending them with vaguely cathedral-like organs, synth washes, and noise feedback, this album creates similar ambient tensions.

Ambient music is often considered relaxing or downright soporific. but such complacency is not for the group known as Nonconnah, “a collective headed by Zachary Corsa and Denny Wilkerson Corsa, with regular contributions from Blake Edward Conley and others.”  The references in the album’s title sum it up well: a blend of garden-variety tragedy, apocalyptic dread, razor-sharp shards, and purring comfort is what this collection offers. Much like their other recent works, this year’s release never delves into beats per se, but rather conjures up other rhythms that grow from the loops of found, discovered and built sounds layered over each other.

“The Light Of A Dead Star Is Not Something To Fuck Around With,” for example, could almost be an outtake from Brian Eno’s more elegiac tracks from Apollo, if overheard on a distant stereo while surrounded by cicadas and automated sprinklers. Each track creates it’s own blend of synth squalls and squeals, backwards or otherwise manipulated field recordings, and white and pink noise of various timbres.

It’s more appropriate to a cutting edge art gallery than a dinner party, perhaps, but who am I to second guess your dinner parties? Perhaps the title of track six, “All Those Days, As If Spent In A Fugue State,” says it best; or perhaps “Path Of Totality/Rapture Drugs” suggests the experience open-minded listeners are in store for. For the overarching mood suggests tripping while washing dishes as the radio brings the latest news of climate disaster.

Abstracting the states of awareness induced by our machines, mentalities and media is what the best visual art regularly does in the contemplative surroundings of a gallery, and this album, with many layers of rich, visceral sonic textures packed into each track, does much the same. Give it a listen and imagine where a slow, increasingly unearthly elevator ride into space might take you.

Nonconnah plays with In Sonitus Lux on Wednesday, July 31 at the Hi-Tone Cafe, 10:00 pm – 1:00 am; and with Fanclub and Blvck Hippie, Tuesday, August 6 at Growlers, 9:00 pm – 12:00 am.

Categories
Music Music Blog

“The George Klein Tribute Show” to be Held August 11th

Jerry Williams and George Klein

George Klein will be honored at “The George Klein Tribute Show” on August 11th at 4 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.

It’s fitting that Klein will be honored during “Elvis Week.” He and The King were close friends from the 1950s until Elvis’ death in 1977.

Klein, who died February 5th at the age of 83, was a radio and TV personality. He was a deejay, had his own TV shows, made personal appearances seemingly everywhere, and was in Elvis movies, including “Jailhouse Rock.”

Jerry Williams, a friend of Klein’s for 71 years, put the show together. “He’s a Memphis icon,” Williams says. “He deserves it.”

The lineup includes Carla Thomas, Joyce Cobb, Merrilee Rush, T. G. Sheppard, Ronnie McDowell, Kelly Laing, Wendy Moten, William Bell, Royal Blues Band, and Jason D. Williams. “I didn’t get one ‘no.’ When I would call them, literally every one of them had their stories about George and what he meant to their career – from playing their first record to putting them on the TV show. No conversation was without tears.”

Williams says he could have had 100 people perform, but he stopped at 10.

He specifically picked the date for the show. “It’s on August 11th, the first Sunday of Elvis Week. And, you remember, George always had his events on the first Sunday of Elvis Week. That was sort of George’s day.”

Klein did 37 “George Klein and the Elvis Mafia” shows and 42 “George Klein Christmas Charity Shows,” Williams says.

Williams met Klein in the spring of 1948 “because of the Memphis Chicks baseball team.”

Klein was 11 and Williams was 8. “When the Chicks would start spring practice for the season, we would make 30, 35 cents a day. We would shag balls. We were batboys. We got to know all the guys.”

Their friendship continued after Williams moved to California in 1964 to manage Paul Revere & the Raiders.

And it continued after Williams returned to Memphis. “I came back in ‘69 and built Trans Maximus (TMI) Studios. And from that we had TMI Records.”

TMI was a success. “We stayed on charts at TMI for seven years without coming off. Steve Cropper was in charge of production.”

They cut records for Poco and Charlie Rich, among others. They also cut Jeff Beck’s Going Down album, which was Beck’s signature album with the title song written by Don Nix.

Klein played those albums on his radio show, Williams said. “Absolutely. He played every one of them. George was fabulous about playing anybody local. Anything recorded by local artists and by international artists who recorded in Memphis.”

He and Klein would talk daily after Williams permanently moved back to Memphis in 1971, Williams says.

“Somebody asked me, ‘What do you miss most about George Klein?’ I said, ‘George Klein.’ The reason is very simple. He was always a what-you-see-what-you-get kind of guy. No airs to George Klein.”

Klein “didn’t really know he was important to the world-wide music industry. Did you know he was the first person with a live broadcast show to put an African-American on live in Memphis? Fats Domino.”

He also invited African-American couples to dance along with the white couples on his TV show, Williams says.

“George Klein was a special guy because he did things he thought were right at the time that the world thought was wrong. And he went across the grain.”

Williams will host the “The George Klein Tribute Show,” which will be a first for him. “This is not a wailing wall kind of thing. This is entertainment.”

And, he says, “This is not a sad occasion. This is 10 acts who loved George.”

Tickets to “The George Klein Tribute Show” are $50. VIP tickets, which includes a “swag bag,” are $100. Tickets may be purchased at Lafayette’s Music Room. For more information, call (901) 207-5097 or go to lafayettes.com/mwmphs/event-tickets/

Categories
News News Blog

Group: Matthews’ ‘Homophobic’ Statements ‘Cringe-worthy and Insidious’

CREDIT: Davin Clemons/Facebook

Davin Clemons/Facebook

A local talk show host’s recent statements about an openly gay man running for Memphis City Council were labeled ”cringe-worthy and insidious” by a gay-rights group.

On his show Monday, Thaddeus Matthews targeted Davin Clemons, who is running for the council’s District 6 seat. If he wins, Clemons will be the council’s first openly gay member.

On his show, Matthews said he was only really watching the Memphis mayor’s race this year and the District 6 race. His interest in the race for the council seat was to support Edmund Ford Sr.

Ford is a “family man, a man that has a wife, has children, a man who loves his wife, who is a woman” as Matthews said. His opponent, Clemons, “is a homosexual. He’s out of the closet,” Matthews said. Clemons is the Memphis Police Department’s LGBTQ liaison.

“Homosexuality is not against the law,” Matthews said. “I don’t want you to not vote for somebody because of their sexual preferences. They do all of that in the bedroom, unless you got a record of being a police officer with a record of fraternizing with other men while on the job. We’ll save all of that for a later date.”

LGBTQ Victory Fund, a national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ leaders to public office, condemned the remarks late Tuesday. The organization called them “homophobic comments and false accusations targeting” Clemons.

“Thaddeus Matthews’s bigoted attack on Davin is both cringe-worthy and insidious – an unsubtle and failed attempt at doublespeak that insults the intelligence of his listeners and the people of Memphis,” said former Houston Mayor Annise Parker, president & CEO of LGBTQ Victory Fund. “But the most repulsive moment in his diatribe is when he attacks Davin — a police officer who risks his life for his community — with a vague and false accusation for which he offers zero evidence.

[pullquote-1]
“He is attempting to exploit the tired and homophobic stereotype of gay men as sexual predators, but we have learned these attacks are increasingly rejected by voters in Tennessee and across the country.

“Matthews is a charlatan going after ratings through provocation. It will not stop this historic LGBTQ candidate who spends his days going door to door to speak with voters about how to uplift and unite Memphis, not divide.”

See Matthews’ statements here:

Group: Matthews’ ‘Homophobic’ Statements ‘Cringe-worthy and Insidious’

Categories
News News Blog

MLGW Posts Low Energy Rates

Memphis has the third-lowest energy rates among the biggest cities in the country, according to the latest figures from Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW).

Only Oklahoma City and San Antonio had better rates as of January. That’s when MLGW surveyed power companies across the country to see how Memphis stacks up on energy rates.

In January, MLGW customers paid $260.54 on 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity, 200 cubic feet of gas and 10 cubic feet of water. Oklahoma City customers paid $226.70, and San Antonians paid $240.98. 

American cities with the highest energy rates were New York City ($683.41), Boston ($632.85), and Los Angeles ($555.50).

MLGW has had the lowest rates in the country 16 times since 1992, according to the utility, a division of the city of Memphis.

“MLGW’s financial management remains a driving force in keeping utility bills as low as possible,” reads a statement from MLGW. “While inflation may have driven other prices up, MLGW’s rates over the past five years have stayed in a fairly steady range.”

Read the full report here:
[pdf-1]

Categories
Intermission Impossible Theater

Ostrander Nominations Announced for 2019

CREDIT: Carla McDonald

Carla McDonald

Tuck Everlasting at Playhouse on the Square

The 36th annual Ostrander Awards comes together on August 25th at the Orpheum, honoring the best of most of Memphis theater for the 2018-2019 season. The judges have conferred and come up with the nominees listed here.

The one winner we know for certain this year is veteran actor Christina Wellford Scott, who will receive the Eugart Yerian Award for Lifetime Achievement. That honor is given to those who have distinguished themselves for years of contributions to the local performance community.

More information on the Ostranders is here. Tickets are available in advance for $15 plus fees, and at the door for $20. A ticket includes the post-event reception at the Halloran Centre. They’re available here.

In the collegiate division, dramas and musicals are in one category for the majority of awards. In the community and professional division, awards are split by drama or musical.

If you’re counting, Theatre Memphis (Lohrey Stage) has 43 nominations, TM’s Next Stage 30, Playhouse on the Square 37, Circuit Playhouse 22, New Moon Theatre 13, Hattiloo Theatre 8, Harrell Theatre 4, and POTS@TheWorks 3.

Thanks as always to Memphis magazine, ArtsMemphis, and the Orpheum Theatre Group for making it possible.

Community & Professional Division

Best Set Design of a Drama
• Andrew Mannion, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Brian Ruggaber & Melanie Mulder, The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre
• Bryce Cutler, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• Jack Yates, Heisenberg, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Jack Yates, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis

Best Set Design of a Musical
• Jack Yates, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Jack Yates, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Jack Yates, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Jack Yates, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Tim McMath, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square

Best Costume Design for a Drama 
• Amie Eoff, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Theatre Memphis
• Ashley Kopera, Twelfth Night, New Moon
• Heather Steward, Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Lindsay Schmeling, The Legend of Georgia McBride, Circuit Playhouse
• Waverly Strickland, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square

Best Costume Design for a Musical
• Amie Eoff, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Amie Eoff, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Amie Eoff, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Kathleen R. Kovarik, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Playhouse on the Square
• Kathleen R. Kovarik, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square

Best Hair/Wig/Makeup for a Drama
• Lindsay Schmeling, The Legend of Georgia McBride, Circuit Playhouse
• Barbara Sanders, Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Heather Steward and Lindsay Taylor, Dracula, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Buddy Hart & Rence Phillips, Steel Magnolias, Harrell Theatre
• Alexandria Perel-Sams, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Theatre Memphis

Best Hair/Wig/Makeup for a Musical
• A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Playhouse on the Square
• Barbara Sanders, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Buddy Hart & Rence Phillips, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Kathleen R. Kovarik, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square
• Waverly Strickland, Madagascar, Circuit Playhouse

Best Props Design for a Drama
• Betty Dilley, Steel Magnolias, Harrell Theatre
• Brandyn Nordlof, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Brandyn Nordlof, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• Jack Yates, Heisenberg, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Jack Yates, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis

Best Props Design for a Musical
• Brandyn Nordlof & Abby Teel, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Playhouse on the Square
• Brandyn Nordlof, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square
• Brandyn Nordlof, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Jack Yates, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Jack Yates, Newsies, Theatre Memphis

Best Lighting Design for a Drama
• Alyssandra Docherty, The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre
• Justin Gibson, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• Mandy Kay Heath, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Trey Eikleberry and Justin Gibson, Junk, Circuit Playhouse
• Trey Eikleberry, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse

Best Lighting Design for a Musical
• Justin Gibson, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Mandy Kay Heath, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Mandy Kay Heath, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Mandy Kay Heath, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Melissa Andrews & Thomas Halfacre, Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre

Best Sound Design for a Drama
• Ashley Davis, The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre
• Carter McHann, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Joe Johnson, Heisenberg, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Joe Johnson, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Travis Bradley, Carter McHann, & Jordan Nichols, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square

Best Sound Design for a Musical
• Carter McHann, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Gene Elliott, Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Jason Eschhofen & Reyn Lehman, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Joshua Crawford, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Joshua Crawford, Newsies, Theatre Memphis

Best Music Direction
• Eileen Kuo, Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Gary Beard, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Jeff Brewer, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Jeff Brewer, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Nathan McHenry, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Playhouse on the Square

Best Choreography/Fight Choreography for a Drama
• Brittany Church, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Courtney Oliver & Donald Sutton, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Daniel Stuart Nelson, The Legend of Georgia McBride, Circuit Playhouse
• Jordan Nichols & Travis Bradley, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• Naivell Steib, The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre

Best Choreography for a Musical
• Daniel Stuart Nelson, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Jordan Nichols & Travis Bradley, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Jordan Nichols & Travis Bradley, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Travis Bradley, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square
• Whitney Branan, Madagascar, Circuit Playhouse

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama
• Aliza Moran, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Annie Freres, Twelfth Night, New Moon Theatre
• Danika Norfleet, A Song for Coretta, Hattiloo Theatre
• Susan Brindley, Agnes of God, New Moon Theatre
• Tamara Wright, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis

Best Supporting Actress in a Musical
• Annie Freres, Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Edna Dinwiddie, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Jaclyn Suffel, Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Rebecca Johnson, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square
• Whitney Branan, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis

Best Leading Actress in a Drama
• Jaclyn Suffel, The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Jessica Jai Johnson, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Kim Sanders, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Natalie Jones, Heisenberg, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Sarah Jo Biggs, Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis

Best Leading Actress in a Musical
• Christina Hernandez, Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Erica Peninger, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Jenny Wilson, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Kelly McCarty, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Whitney Branan, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama
• Andrew Chandler, Dracula, Theatre Memphis
• JS Tate, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Justin Allen Tate, The Legend of Georgia McBride, Circuit Playhouse
• Michael Gravois, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• Oliver Jacob Pierce, Twelfth Night, New Moon Theatre

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical
• Donald Sutton, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Javier Pena, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Luke Conner, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Michael Gravois, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Talen Piner, Madagascar, Circuit Playhouse

Best Leading Actor in a Drama
• Danny Crowe, 1984, Circuit Playhouse
• Gabe Beutel-Gunn, Junk, Circuit Playhouse
• Jason Spitzer, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Theatre Memphis
• Ryan Duda, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• TC Sharpe, The Miraculous and the Mundane, POTS@TheWorks

Best Leading Actor in a Musical 
• Bradley Karel, Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Donald Sutton, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square
• John Maness, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Michael Gravois, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Playhouse on the Square
• Ryan Gilliam, The Producers, Harrell Theatre

Best Featured Performer in a Drama
• Christina Wellford Scott, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• Jason Gerhard, Junk, Circuit Playhouse
• Jimbo Lattimore, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Theatre Memphis
• Lena Wallace Black, Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Steven Brown, Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis

Best Featured Performer in a Musical
• Ann Marie Hall, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Daniel Kopera, Jesus Christ Superstar, Harrell Theatre
• Jason Eschhofen, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Jimbo Lattimore, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Kirie Walz, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Kristin Doty, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Playhouse on the Square

Best Ensemble in a Drama
• Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre

Best Ensemble in a Musical
• 1776, Theatre Memphis
• 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Newsies, Theatre Memphis

Best Direction of a Drama
• Dennis Whitehead-Darling, The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre
• Irene Crist, Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• Jason Spitzer, Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• John Maness, Twelfth Night, New Moon Theatre
• Jordan Nichols & Travis Bradley, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square

Best Direction of a Musical
• Cecelia Wingate, 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Dave Landis, Cabaret, Playhouse on the Square
• Dave Landis, Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square
• Jordan Nichols & Travis Bradley, Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• Jordan Nichols & Travis Bradley, Newsies, Theatre Memphis

Best Production of a Drama
• Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• Sweat, Circuit Playhouse
• The Clean House, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Playhouse on the Square
• The Parchman Hour: Songs and Stories of the ‘61 Freedom Riders, Hattiloo Theatre

Best Production of a Musical
• Hairspray, Theatre Memphis
• 1776, Theatre Memphis
• Newsies, Theatre Memphis
• Lizzie: The Musical, New Moon Theatre
• Tuck Everlasting, Playhouse on the Square

College Division

Best Set Design
• Brian Ruggaber, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Kenton Jones, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Nicholas Jackson, Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis

Best Costume Design
• Kennon Cliche, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Jen Gillette, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Jen Gillette, Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis

Best Hair/Wig/Makeup
• Emily Greene, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Jen Gilette, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Rebecca Koenig & Keyauna Shorter, Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis

Best Props Design
• Kenton Jones, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Karen Arredondo, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Hattie Fann, Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis

Best Lighting Design
• Anthony Pellecchia, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Melissa Andrews, Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine, Rhodes College
• Zoey Smith, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis

Best Sound Design
• John Phillians, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Anthony Pellecchia, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Sophia Deck, Rose and the Rime, Rhodes College

Best Music Direction
• Jacob Allen, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Eileen Kuo, I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (2018 version), Rhodes College

Best Choreography
• Jill Guyton Nee, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (2018 version), Rhodes College

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama 
• Ariona Campbell, Crumbs from the Table of Joy, Southwest Tennessee Community College
• Hiawartha Jackson, Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine, Rhodes College
• Eboni Cain, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis

Best Supporting Actress in a Musical
• Erica Peninger, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Lea Mae Aldridge, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Marlee Wilson, Be More Chill, University of Memphis

Best Leading Actress in a Drama
• Jessica Jai Johnson, Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine, Rhodes College,
• Simmery Branch, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Grace Small, Rose and the Rime, Rhodes College

Best Leading Actress in a Musical
• Aly Milan, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Jess Brookes, Closer Than Ever, Southwest Tennessee Community College

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama
• Adrian Harris, Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine, Rhodes College
• Toby Davis, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical  (one nominee)

Best Leading Actor in a Drama
• Brandon Lewis, Imagination, Southwest Tennessee Community College
• Willis Green, Rose and the Rime, Rhodes College
• Christian Hinton, Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis

Best Leading Actor in a Musical
• Toby Davis, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Winston Mize, Closer Than Ever, Southwest Tennessee Community College

Best Featured Performer
• Riley Thad Young, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Jasmine Roberts, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• John Ross Graham, Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis

Best Ensemble
• Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (2018 version), Rhodes College

Best Direction
• Justin Braun, Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Dennis Whitehead-Darling, Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• Joy Brooke Fairfield, I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (2018 version), Rhodes College

Best Overall Production
• Be More Chill, University of Memphis
• Intimate Apparel, University of Memphis
• I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (2018 version), Rhodes College

All Divisions

Best Original Script
• Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis
• Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• The Miraculous and the Mundane, POTS@TheWorks

Best Production of an Original Script
• Shaming JANE DOE, University of Memphis
• Little Women, Next Stage, Theatre Memphis
• The Miraculous and the Mundane, POTS@TheWorks

Categories
News News Blog

A Look at Mass Gun Violence in Memphis

There have been 246 mass shootings in the United States so far in 2019, according to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA).

The latest mass shooting took place on Sunday when a gunman opened fire at a festival in Gilroy, California, killing at least three people and wounding a dozen more, according to CNN.

The red dots indicate mass shootings that occurred between January 1st and July 19th.

The GVA is a not-for-profit corporation that collects data from over 6,500 law enforcement, media, government, and commercial sources in an effort to provide real-time data on gun violence. The GVA is one of a handful of organizations that track mass shootings and publish the data. 


There are a few different definitions of a mass shooting. The GVA defines it as a shooting in which four or more people, not including the shooter, are injured or killed in a single location. 

Based on that definition, there have been two mass shootings in Memphis this year, according to the GVA. No one was killed during either shooting, but 10 people were injured.

Since 2015, there have been 27 incidents of this kind here, resulting in 13 deaths and 112 injuries. The GVA does not consider the location or the circumstances that led to each of the incidents noted in the charts below. This means some of the shootings could have occurred as a result of criminal activity or domestic disputes, rather than being random acts of violence.

The number of shootings in which four or more people were injured or killed in a single location.

The number of deaths and injuries resulting from the incidents in the previous chart.


Of the 27 mass shootings, 13 took place in public locations, while the other 14 were at private residences. None of the shootings here were considered active-shooter incidents, which the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) defines as a situation in which “an individual is  actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area.”

Since 2015, three active-shooter incidents have occurred in Tennessee, according to the FBI database. In 2016, one person was killed and three were wounded after a gunman opened fire at a Days Inn in Bristol.

Then in 2017, a man shot and killed one person and wounded seven opening fire in the parking lot of Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch.

In 2018, a gunman opened fire in a Nashville Waffle House, killing four people and wounding four others.



For more facts and figures on mass shootings and gun violence in the country, visit the Gun Violence Archive. To learn more about active shooter incidents and how to respond, go here or watch the video below. 

A Look at Mass Gun Violence in Memphis

Categories
Food & Drink Hungry Memphis

Best Bets: Cozy Corner Fried Catfish

CREDIT: Michael Donahue

Michael Donahue

Fried catfish at Cozy Corner Restaurant

Since it was Sunday, I decided to go fishing. As in trying the Sundays-only catfish at Cozy Corner Restaurant.

The legendary Memphis barbecue restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays. And that’s the only day you can get fried catfish, which comes with two sides, and two slices of white bread.

Until June 23rd, catfish never was sold at the 75 North Parkway location, which opened in August, 1977. Previously, catfish was sold from 1986 to 1988 at another location, Cozy Corner Catfish and Ribs, which now is closed.

That catfish recipe came from Cozy Corner founder, the late Raymond Robinson. The family doesn’t have his original recipe, but they know what was in it. And those who are old enough remember how Robinson’s fried catfish tasted. As general manager Bobby Bradley told me, “It’s not 100 percent, but we tried.”

You can order two-piece or three-piece plates at Cozy Corner. I chose the three piece. The pieces were large and tasty. I really liked the seasoning, which has a good salty – but not overly salty – taste.

Someone told me about adding hot sauce to fried catfish about 20 years ago at a fish fry in Mississippi, I believe. I’ve been adding it ever since. They do have little packets of my favorite, Louisiana Hot Sauce, at Cozy Corner, but you really don’t need it.

I had to try some of Cozy Corner’s barbecue sauce on the catfish. I wasn’t sure if that was the best combination, so I asked Cozy Corner matriarch Desiree Robinson to try a bite  of the fish with the barbecue sauce. “It was OK,” she told me.

Her grandson, Sean Robinson, also tried a bite. His response: “It was better than I expected it to be.”

Which means you might not want to add barbecue sauce to your fried catfish.

If you want Cozy Corner fried catfish, but you just have to have barbecue and don’t want to get a sandwich, ribs, Cornish game hen, or whatever else is on the menu, you can settle for the barbecue spaghetti, which is one of the sides that comes with the catfish.

Getting to dine with Desiree, who is Raymond Robinson’s widow, was an extra bonus. People kept stopping at the table to say hello to her.

Desiree told me she and her husband used to have fish every Friday. They had catfish, but not every week. They had “every kind of fish,” she says. “I remember it was excellent.”

Desiree told me she majored in commercial dietetics at Tuskegee. But, she says, “I didn’t know I was going to marry a man who cooked better than me.”

She recalled the time she was going to cook dinner, but Raymond stopped her. “He wanted to do it. He said, ‘I love to cook. Cooking relaxes me.’”

So, Desiree says, “I tried to keep him relaxed for the rest of his life.”

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Film/TV Film/TV/Etc. Blog

Music Video Monday: Uriah Mitchell

This Music Video Monday might be for you.

Uriah Mitchell‘s got music in his blood. As the son of Lawrence “Boo” Mitchell and great-grandson of Willie Mitchell, he’s the fourth generation to make music at Royal Studios.

He’s got a new album, No More Lullabies, which he wrote, produced, engineered, and performed. The first song, “Might Be”, spikes a jilted lover’s brush-off with anime references and dope beats. The video was directed by Waheed AlQawasmi, and kicks off with some eye-popping visual effects. Check it out:

Music Video Monday: Uriah Mitchell

If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com. 

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From My Seat Sports

Brooks Koepka: Memphian

CREDIT: CBS Sports

There’s an odd sensation to being a Memphis sports fan while away from Memphis. I spent last week on the North Carolina coast, a gathering of family scheduled before the dates of the first World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational were made public. Which means I had to follow, from afar, the greatest gathering of golfers the Bluff City has ever seen.
CBS Sports

Brooks Koepka takes the trophy in Memphis.

And what an extraordinary event it turned out to be. In pulling away from the world’s third-ranked player (Rory McIlroy), Brooks Koepka — the world’s top-ranked player, and rising — won his first WGC event, took home $1.7 million, and made a new fan for every dollar earned, it seemed, by all the glowing things he had to say about Memphis, the Southwind course, and especially, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The greatest golfer in the world relished winning in Memphis.

Emphasis on that last sentence, as the lead-up to this first WGC in Memphis seemed to be dominated by one of the three top-50 players who chose not to make the trip. As one top-10 player after another — Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm — booked a flight to Memphis, social media throbbed with the question, “Will Tiger be here?”

After missing the cut at the British Open — and with health concerns, again — Tiger Woods chose to skip Memphis, again. The finest golfer of the century has yet to play a competitive hole at TPC Southwind, and you know what? It’s Tiger’s loss. I got called for BS when I suggested at the commitment deadline that Woods needs the Memphis tournament more than we need him, but I was precisely right. Tournament director Darrell Smith and his staff have put on a world-class event for years, and in support of the fight against childhood cancer. For crying out loud, anyone who chooses not to be part of such a weekend is missing more than a paycheck.

Let’s pause a moment to relish the international impact of last weekend’s tournament. At the end of the first found last Thursday, seven countries were represented among the top 12 players. Koepka and McIlroy were not among them. And it kept getting better. At the end of play Friday, five players were within three shots of the leader, England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick, but Koepka still wasn’t among them. With a 64 in Saturday’s third round, Koepka climbed into second place, behind McIlroy who shot an 8-under-par 62. So two of the world’s top three players walked Southwind’s 18 holes Sunday, the planet’s golf axis tilting here in Memphis. You had to wonder if Woods was watching, wherever he happened to be nursing what ails him.

I got home in time to see the final few holes on TV, to see St. Jude patients greeting the leaders as they finished a tournament the players will remember as much as us fans (even those of us getting updates during a cross-state drive home). There are days that feel like sunshine at the beach, no matter how land-locked we might be at the time. I left the Atlantic coast Saturday, only to find the sunniest moment of my vacation right here in our back yard.

• It’s been a slog of a season for the Memphis Redbirds, but two outfielders made some history last week. On Friday night in Oklahoma City, Randy Arozarena became only the third Redbird to hit for the cycle in a Memphis win over the Dodgers. All three cycles have come away from AutoZone Park, Mark Little accomplishing the feat at Colorado Springs in 2000 and Luke Voit pulling it off last year at Iowa. Then on Saturday night, Lane Thomas became only the eighth Redbird to hit three home runs in a game. It’s an achievement he can discuss in detail with teammate Adolis Garcia, who knocked three baseballs over the wall last year in a game at Salt Lake.