A NEW FACE TO THE PHOENIX LANDING

The Phoenix Landing is an institution in Central Square, renowned for its underground dance music, international sports viewing and their modern interpretation of traditional Irish Pub fare. The Phoenix Landing recently renovated the facade of their restaurant continuing their commitment to the community and a positive impact to Central Square and the surrounding community.

For photos go to below.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thephoenixlanding

This week’s Friday Wine Pick is the definition of esoteric. It is 100% Tannat, a grape native to the western Basque-influenced regions of France and most notably Madiran. Here the wines produced from the grape are high in tannins, rich in raspberry fruit and deep in color. More recently the grape has been claimed as the national grape of Uruguay after making its first move across the ocean to the southern reaches of South America about a century ago. The ancient soils and drastic climate of Uruguay create Tannats with ripe fruit flavors, and softer more supple tannic structures.

The 2006 Bodegas Carrau Tannat is a big, dark, extracted mouthful of plum and raspberry fruit with woodsy aromas of violets and lavender. It is an ideal pairing for grilled meats, the type you wrangle in yourself from the plains of Uruguay before roasting over a smoldering fire pit, or, if spearing a giant animal wasn’t on the agenda today you can pick up our Salumeria Biellese Petit Jesu salami or a rich earthy blue like our Colston Bassett Stilton.

Come in this afternoon or anytime over the weekend to sample it yourself!

Regular price $16 per bottle
Email Special $14 per bottle on orders of six or more.

Happy Friday,

Jessica
jessica@centralbottle.com for more on our friday pick

central bottle wine+provisions
196 massachusetts avenue, cambridge ma 02139
617.225.0040 info@centralbottle.com

m t w f & s 11–8
thursday 11–9
sunday 12–6

Underground Railway Theater

presents

Harriet Jacobs

Performances Added Due To Popular Demand!

– Playing through Sunday, January 31 at Central Square Theater –
Due to popular demand, performances have been added this weekend for Harriet Jacobs, the true life story of a slave in the years leading to the Civil War, playing at the Central Square Theater in Cambridge. Presented by Underground Railway Theater in collaboration with artists from The Providence Black Repertory Company, Harriet Jacobs plays through Sunday, January 31.

In making the announcement, Cathy Carr Kelly, executive director of the Central Square Theater remarked “the demand for tickets has far exceeded our capacity. This production has struck a chord with audiences. We simply didn’t have enough seats for all who wanted to see Harriet Jacobs, so we have added two performances this weekend, on Saturday afternoon and on Sunday evening, which is the final weekend for the show.”

Astonishing and moving, Harriet Jacobs is the story of a remarkable woman’s resistance to oppression. In Lydia R. Diamond’s adaptation of Jacobs’ autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet reaches out from her own era and compels us to look at our history as if for the first time. Directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian, this unsparing yet poetic coming-of-age story is based on the only published book-length slave narrative written by a woman.

Conversations with special guests, local academics, and the actors will follow select performances (see list below).

Harriet Jacobs plays at Central Square Theater, 450 Mass. Ave. in Cambridge, through Sunday, January 31. The full schedule, including the added performances is Thursday at 7:30 PM, Friday at 8 PM, Saturday at 3 PM and 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM and 7 PM. Tickets, priced at $35; $25 for seniors; $20 for students with a valid ID; $15 for student rush (day of performance), are available by calling (866) 811-4111, online at www.centralsquaretheater.org, or at the Central Square Theater box office. For box office hours, and more info call (617) 576-9278 x213.

Date Time Talk-in-the-Box Series

Thurs, Jan. 28 7:30 PM: Talk back with Catherine Caldwell Harris, Associate Professor of Psychology, Boston University

Sat., Jan. 30, 8:00 PM & Sun., Jan 31, 2 PM: Talk back with Gene Dattel, Financial historian and author of Cotton and Race in the Making of America

By David L. Harris
Wicked Local Cambridge
Posted Jan 26, 2010 @ 03:45 PM
Last update Jan 26, 2010 @ 03:50 PM
Cambridge —

Pearl Art & Craft Supplies’ Cambridge branch is set to close this weekend after 20 years in business in the middle of Central Square.

The monstrous Central Square store at 579 Mass. Ave. will be open through Sunday with most items discounted by at least 75 percent, according to store staffer Marlene Santavicca. But the store, with corporate headquarters in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., could remain open a little longer depending on inventory.

The store, Santavicca said, is one of about 10 “underperforming” stores that are closing nationwide.

Santavicca said customers can continue to buy art supplies at the company’s Web site.

The Nora Theatre Company

presents

Not Enough Air

– February 11 thru March 14, Central Square Theater –

Local playwright Masha Obolensky electrifies with Not Enough Air, the riveting story of two women: one on trial for murder, the other a writer determined to tell hre story. Presented by The Nora Theatre Company Not Enough Air plays at Central Square Theater from Thursday, February 11 through Sunday, March 14. The press performance is set for Sunday, February 14 at 2 PM.

In this East Coast Premiere, famed journalist-turned-playwright Sophie Treadwell finds herself drawn into the sensational 1920’s murder trial of Long Island housewife Ruth Snyder (Ruby Rose Fox). Treadwell, played by Anne Gottlieb, is compelled to give voice to Ruth’s story resulting in her landmark expressionist play, Machinal. Directed by Melia Bensussen, Not Enough Air delves into a frenzied world of tabloid murder and media manipulation in which women’s voices struggle to be heard. The play received First Prize in Boston Theatre Works 2005 Unbound Festival and a Jane Chambers Award in 2006. In 2009, it premiered at Chicago’s TimeLine Theatre where it was nominated for 5 Jeff Awards, including Outstanding New Work.

Masha Obolensky is a playwright, director and performer. She has written and directed original performance pieces that have been presented by La Mama E.T.C., New Georges, Here Arts Center, 78th Street Theatre Lab, Access Theatre, and The Director’s Collective. Her 10-minute play Girls Play was selected for the regional Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in January 2010. Not Enough Air is her first full-length play. Masha currently lives in Somerville, teaches at Northeastern University and Middlesex Community College, and is currently pursuing her MFA in playwriting at Boston University.

Melia Bensussen is the recipient of an OBIE Award for Outstanding Direction, and has directed extensively around the country, including at La Jolla Playhouse, Baltimore Centerstage, Hartford Stage, the New York Shakespeare Festival, Manhattan Class Company, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and People’s Light and Theatre Company, where she received a Barrymore nomination for Best Direction. Most recently she directed The Taming of the Shrew for Actors’ Shakespeare Project in Cambridge, and in April will direct a production of The Blonde, The Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead at Merrimack Repertory Theatre. She was twice given Directing Awards by the Princess Grace Foundation, USA, including their top honor, the Statuette Award for Sustained Excellence in Directing. Melia is Chair of the Performing Arts Department at Emerson College in Boston.

Anne Gottlieb is thrilled to be back at The Nora Theatre Company where she appeared in the New England Premiere of Crave and the Elliot Norton Award winning production of Betrayal for which she also received the 2004 IRNE Award for Best Actress. Recent appearances include The Goat or Who is Sylvia? at Gloucester Stage Company and The Wrestling Patient which Anne co-created with Kirk Lynn and Katie Pearl. The piece received its world premiere in March 2009 co-produced by her newly formed company, FortyMagnolias Productions, SpeakEasy Stage Company and Boston Playwrights’ Theatre. She is a Resident Scholar in collaborative theater at the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis University.

Ruby Rose Fox has recently appeared as Ilse in Zeitgeist Stage’s Spring Awakening, in Macbeth with Actor’s Shakespeare Project, and debuted her one-woman show, Little Legacy, for the palliative care unit at Boston Children’s Hospital. Little Legacy is an ongoing performance using Shakespeare, classical and modern poetry, and her mother’s journal to reveal the inner experience of a grieving child. Ruby’s new one-woman show/one-puppet show, The Other Woman, was performed fall of 2009, with her new theater company, Boston Experimental Theater. Ruby is a BFA acting graduate of Emerson College.

Marianna Bassham, who has acted with many area theaters, most recently in Reckless at SpeakEasy Stage Company and currently in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Actors’ Shakespeare Project; Grant MacDermott, an Emerson College BFA graduate,who appeared in New Repertory Theatre’s Mister Roberts this fall; Craig Mathers,who has worked extensively in local and regional theaters, including in Actors’ Shakepeare Project’s The Taming of the Shrew directed by Melia Bensussen; and Billy Meleady, who has been seen in many productions with The Súgán Theatre Company, as well as with SpeakEasy Stage Company and New Repertory Theatre, round out the acting ensemble.

Returning to The Nora are set designer Eric Levenson (The Sea Horse, Dublin Carol, Smelling a Rat, Stop Kiss); costume designer Gail Astrid Buckley (We Won’t Pay! We Won’t Pay!, Full Gallop, Betrayal, The Countess); and lighting designer John R. Malinowski (The Caretaker, The Cherry Orchard, The Man Who, Crave). Joining The Nora for the first time are sound designer David Remedios, well-known for his work at American Repertory Theater, and props coordinator Natalie Kearns, who has worked on several shows with SpeakEasy Stage Company, among others.

Conversations with special guests, local academics from Harvard University and MIT, and the actors will follow select performances (see list below).

Not Enough Air plays at Central Square Theater, 450 Mass. Ave. in Cambridge, Thursday, February 11 through Sunday, March 14. Performances are Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 PM, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM with matinees on Sundays at 2 PM. There will be an additional evening performance on Sunday, February 14 at 7:00 PM. Tickets, priced at $35; $25 for seniors; $20 for students with a valid ID; $15 for student rush (day of performance), can be purchased by calling (866) 811-4111, online at www.centralsquaretheater.org, or at the Central Square Theater box office. For box office hours, group discounts, and more info call (617) 576-9278 x213.

Date Time Talk-in-the-Box Series_________________________

Thurs., Feb. 11 7:30 pm Talkback with a TBA member of the Harvard community.

Fri., Feb. 12 8:00 pm Join the GLBT community for a post-performance reception.

Sat., Feb. 13 8:00 pm Join local young professionals and graduate students for a post-performance reception.

Sun., Feb. 14 2:00 pm Talkback with Shula Reinharz, Director of the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis University.

Wed., Feb. 17 7:30 pm Talkback with Christopher Capozzola, Associate Professor of History from MIT. He specializes in the political and cultural history of the United States from 1861 to 1945.

Thurs, Feb. 18 7:30 pm Talkback with cast and director.

Fri., Feb. 19 8:00 pm Today’s talk, tomorrow’s theater: Envision future programs with Central Square Theater’s leadership. .

Wed., Feb. 24 7:30 pm Sponsored by University Wine and Harvest Co-op, join us for post- performance wine and cheese tasting.

###

About Central Square Theater

At Central Square Theater, a new state-of-the-art community-based theatrical arts facility, audiences will find, under one roof, the distinctive repertoires of two award-winning non-profit professional companies, The Nora Theatre Company and Underground Railway Theater, as well as collaborative projects drawing on their creative synergy. Schools, families and community groups will benefit from outreach and educational programs, and local businesses will enjoy increased foot traffic and new customers. As the first permanent home for these two theater companies, Central Square Theater will be a vibrant hub of theatrical, educational and social activity, where artists and audiences come together to create theater vital to our communities.

The seeds of the Central Square Theater (CST) were sown in 1997, with a partnership between The Nora Theatre Company, Underground Railway Theater, and the Community Development Department of the City of Cambridge, which brokered a relationship with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). MIT constructed the building and provided an extraordinary 20-year lease commitment at under $5 per square foot — a contribution valued at more than $2 million over time.

For more information, please call 617-576-9278 or go to www.centralsquaretheater.org.

Nerdnite is now on a regular monthly schedule! Last Monday of every month.
The next Nerdnite:

Monday January 25, 2010 — 8pm at Middlesex Lounge

315 Mass Ave, Cambridge

In Central Square

Featuring DJ Claude Money

Talk 1:
“Nerds & Whey: Or, how the controlled spoilage of milk begets the world’s tastiest cheeses.”
by Aaron Foster

Talk 2:
“Everything You Can Do I Can Have Measured: Studying Face to Face Social Networks Using Cellphones”
by Iolanthe Chronis

Click here for more details on the talks and the event. $5 cover.

Got a question about Nerdnite? Have an idea for a talk? Send us an email using the alluring “contact” tab at the top of this page.

Nerdnite Boston elsewhere on the web:
Facebook
Flickr
Twitter

nerdnite Boston has its own Google Group, for reasons of a historical nature. However, any posts on the Google Group will be replicated here within 6 hours.

Host your own TV show, learn how to produce your own videos, and join an exciting community of media-makers! Cambridge Community Television (CCTV) is hosting an orientation meeting for all Cambridge residents interested in becoming involved with the station (Channels 9, 10 and 22 on the Cambridge cable system) on Tuesday, February 2nd, 6:30pm, at CCTV. After attending orientation, members will have access to a variety of classes in media production, equipment and facilities to produce their own shows. No prior experience required. Free at CCTV, located at 675 Massachusetts Ave., Central Square, Cambridge. For more information, call 617.661.6900 or visit
http://www.cctvcambridge.org/membership

Among the rolling hills of sheep farms and ambling fruit orchards exists one of the United States’ smallest wine growing appellations, the Yorkville Highlands and the home of this week’s Wine Pick, the 2007 Yorkville Cellars Hi-Rollr Red.

No, that is not a typo – the wine’s name is in fact Hi-Rollr. It comes from Boontling, a long forgotten Creole spoken by the post-gold rush dwellers of Mendocino County’s Anderson Valley. The language has all but disappeared from existence but a few terms such as this still remain. “Hi – Rollr” referred to the people that lived in the hills of Yorkville, that would roll up their pant legs when venturing across the river and down into the valley towns and often forgot to roll them back down again. Essentially, it is a tribute to the wines of the Yorkville hills, this being a red blend from the heart of the appellation.

The bulk of the Hi-Rollr is Zinfandel with fair shares of Merlot and Malbec and just a dash of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. All of the grapes are grown organically, seeing no pesticides or chemicals ever. Packed with lush red raspberry fruit, a twist of herbal freshness and a hint of black peppery spice this wine is the perfect companion to winter fare. It drinks easily on its own offering up gobs of lush fruit, but is well balanced making it an ideal partner with our house Culatello and hard sharp cheeses.

The weekend has finally arrived and it is time for a well-deserved bottle of wine – this is it! Stop in to the shop this evening from 5-7pm to taste the Hi-Rollr and Yorkville Cellars’ other Bordeaux varietals with Deborah Wallo, the owner.

Regular Price $18.00 a bottle
Special Email Offer $16 a bottle on orders of six bottles or more

Happy Friday!
Jessica
jessica@centralbottle.com

central bottle wine+provisions
196 massachusetts avenue, cambridge ma 02139
617.225.0040 info@centralbottle.com

m t w f & s 11–8
thursday 11–9
sunday 12–7

After Work Tapas Bar — every Monday 5-10pm.

Menu for Monday, January 18th:

Grilled Bread with Caponata,

Cured Rhode Island Sardines with Charmoula,

Fried Oysters with Spicy Aioli,

Sauteed Squid with chorizo + arroz negro,

Salt Cod + Virginia Ham Croquetas,

Beef Tongue with Fennel-Caper Salad,

Roasted Baby Brussel Sprouts, Roast Cauliflower with Pine Nuts,

Grilled Merguez with Yogurt Sauce,

Pomegranate + Mint,

Roasted garlic soup with duck confit.

All tapas $5 each.

To pair perfectly with your tapas we are offering tastes of sherry,

this week: “La Cigarrera” Manzanilla sherry for $5.

Come visit us @ the bar!

Ben’s Tuesday Night Special Prix Fixe — 3 courses for $35.

Tuesday, January 19th.

Salad of shaved brussel sprouts with endive,

pecorino romano and polenta croutons

~

Braised rabbit with sherry, prunes and toasted almonds

~

Blood orange cake with creme fraiche

Remember: Our popular Sunday Night Prix Fixe, an ongoing tradition.

The entire menu is available either a la carte or as a Three-Course Prix Fixe –

any appetizer, main course and dessert for $38 — the choice is yours!

Hey, we’re on Twitter now! Follow us at: RendezvousCS.

Hope to see you soon!

The Rendezvous in Central Square is located at:

502 Mass Ave
Cambridge, MA 02139
Phone: 617.576.1900
Fax: 617.576.1931

In front of Cambridge City Hall

Monday, Jan 18 • 11:30 am to Noon

Martin Luther King Day Commemoration

Monday, Jan 18 • 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church/Eglise Baptiste Elim, 838 Mass. Ave.

The Cambridge Peace Commission is holding its annual commemoration of the life and work of Dr. King. In recognition of the devastating earthquake in Haiti, there will be a vigil in memory of Dr. King and all those lost in the Haiti from 11:30 to noon in front of Cambridge City Hall on Monday. There will be a brief memorial procession through Central Square and arrive at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church at 12:15.

After the vigil, participants will gather at the church to hear the words of Dr. King calling for peace, justice and transformation, after being welcomed by Rev. François Trottier of St. Peter’s and Rev. Margulien Saintus of Eglise Baptiste Elim. There will also be brief remarks by Winston Cox
of the Social Justice Academy and Rev. Manikka Bowman, music by Veronique-Anne Epiter, and poetry from Cambridge Boys & Girls Club youth.

This event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
Cambridge Peace Commission

51 Inman St., Cambridge, Mass. 02139 • 617.349.4694 • www.cambridgema.gov/peace