Thursday, December 6, 2012

Hometown News Reader's LOVE The Lyric!

The votes have been tabulated.  The readers have spoken!  

The Treasure Coast LOVES The Lyric!

The 2012 Hometown News Readers Choice Awards have been presented and The Lyric Theatre was the big winner!

Voted:
Best Cultural Arts & Entertainment Venue by the Jensen Beach Readers of the Hometown News
Best Cultural Arts & Entertainment Venue by the Stuart Readers of the Hometown News
Best Cultural Arts & Entertainment Venue by the Palm City Readers of the Hometown News
Best Cultural Arts & Entertainment Venue by the Hobe Sound Readers of the Hometown News
Best Professional Theatre by the Jensen Beach Readers of the Hometown News
Best Professional Theatre by the Stuart Readers of the Hometown News
Best Professional Theatre by the Palm City Readers of the Hometown News
Best Live Venue / Theatre by the Jensen Beach Readers of the Hometown News
Best Live Venue / Theatre by the Stuart Readers of the Hometown News
Best Live Venue / Theatre by the Palm City Readers of the Hometown News
Best Live Venue / Theatre by the Hobe Sound Readers of the Hometown News

Thank you Hometown News Readers!



Monday, November 5, 2012

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy sounds similar to a big band from the swing era but brings a rock 'n' roll energy on stage.

By Isadora Rangel
Published Friday, November 2, 2012

And if you have not heard of it yet, former President Bill Clinton has. He played its music aboard Air Force One.

The band, which plays Nov. 7 at The Lyric Theatre in Stuart, has performed on TV shows and at the Super Bowl, as well as fundraisers and black-tie events for three of the last four presidents. Clinton was the most enthusiastic presidential fan, going on stage with the nine-piece assemble and talking to its members about his collection of vintage ties and saxophones, an instrument he also plays.

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy formed in California during the swing revival of the 1990s. Almost 20 years later, the band tours more than 150 dates a year — usually dressed in 1940s suits and hats — and recently performed on the TV show "Dancing with the Stars."

Despite the tribute to big bands, audiences should not expect a traditional jazz group in which its members sit down and read charts.

"We approach swing with the influence of when we saw rock 'n' roll shows like James Brown," trumpet player Glen 'The Kid' Marhevka said. "We are all over the stage. We don't really sit down. It's kind of high energy."

Marhevka played trumpet in his high school jazz band and studied music in college before joining Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. Seeing a concert by late jazz legend Cab Calloway at Disneyland when he was in the seventh-grade defined his career, Marhevka said.

"He was the coolest guy ever," he said. "I was completely blown away. I watched two concerts that night. I didn't even go on rides."

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy recorded a Calloway tribute in 2009. Its latest album, "Rattle Them Bones," has many original songs composed by band leader Scotty Morris as well some covers, such as the toe-tapping 1920s song "Diga Diga Doo."

The band is not the only one rescuing old rhythms in modern music. The White Stripes shows a big influence of blues music and Mumford and Sons has scored hits playing mainly British folk music. On TV, the show "Mad Men" has brought back imagery from the 1960s.

"It's really interesting to see that style and imagery coming back and people think it's cool," Marhevka said. "We have been doing that for years. It can only help us."


Friday, November 2, 2012

Local women lawyers bring groundbreaking documentary to Lyric Theatre

Posted October 30, 2012 at 7:12 p.m., updated October 30, 2012 at 7:12 p.m

—Treasure Coast residents were treated to “the rest of the story” on Oct. 22 when the Martin County chapter of the Florida Association for Women Lawyers (FAWL) held a free screening of the highly acclaimed HBO documentary “Hot Coffee” at the Lyric Theater.

FAWL board member Linda Weiksnar of Crary Buchanan Attorneys at Law was among those who brought the film into the community. Hailed as a groundbreaking documentary on the American civil justice system, the film presented a very different perspective than what was portrayed in the media on the $3 million verdict awarded a woman who was severely burned when she spilled a cup of McDonald’s coffee on her lap.

“As the documentary showed, McDonald’s knew the risks after 700 or so other scald-related injuries, and chose to ‘play the odds,’” explained Weiksnar. “That disregard for the well-being of its customers led the jury to make the punitive monetary award – something most people never knew.”

The moral of the story? “Don’t rush to judgment,” Weiksnar advised.

This story is contributed by a member of the Treasure Coast community and is neither endorsed nor affiliated with TCPalm.com


Monday, October 15, 2012

Gloria Steinem to speak at The Lyric Theatre, Blake Library Oct. 24

By Zaimarie De Guzman 
Posted October 8, 2012 at 9:33 p.m.

Feminist activist Gloria Steinem will talk politics, women's issues and the presidential race during her Oct. 24 Stuart visit to The Lyric Theatre and Blake Library.  Steinem, the award-winning journalist who founded Ms. Magazine and grew in the '70s as a prominent figure of the feminist movement, will have a conversation with the audience, answering questions and providing feedback.  "I love the fact that she — such an iconic spokesperson for women's rights and voting issues — will be here," said John Loesser, executive director of The Lyric. "I personally think it's important for the community to have this kind of discussion right now with someone as important in the world as she is."

Before appearing at the downtown theater on Oct. 24, Steinem will have a brown bag lunch with guests at the Blake Library. Attendees can bring lunch and have an informal discussion with Steinem.  Both events are free.  "Gloria wanted to connect with the audience and have it be free, and we were fine with that," Loesser said. "We made the Lyric available to her."

Steinem first came to Florida in 1972 as a co-founder of the National Women's Political Caucus and has since traveled the world to voice her concerns on equality. Steinem is working on the book, "Road to the Heart: America As if Everyone Mattered," which details her more than 30 years on the road as a feminist organizer.
Steinem reportedly is campaigning at other Florida venues, trying to reach groups of republican and independent women.  "Her visit here is going to be exciting, informative," Loesser said.

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