OK, I got busy and fell behind. Here's a quick overview of just a few of the things I've done in the past six months. I'll check my calendar and fill in the blanks over the next few weeks.
- Lancaster Barnstormers: OK, the team isn't great, but the stadium is friendly and affordable and has good food. It's a great summer date, I always see people I know, and I love that the action is close enough to watch the players, not the screen. lancasterbarnstormers.com/
- Ephrata Performing Arts Center's "The Full Monty": They had trouble with the sound, but that didn't kill the spirit of this fun, funny, and timely show. Great, gutsy performances--and yes, they really did it. Saw it twice, loved it both times. www.ephrataplayhouseinthepark.org/
- Fulton's "Spamalot": Saw this one twice, too. They nailed it. I laughed myself silly. The Fulton's version was better than the touring company that performed at Hershey a few years back. (And I saw this show twice on Broadway.) Fantastic. I grin just thinking about it. http://www.thefulton.org/
- Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire: I missed the Celtic Fling, much to my disappointment, but hit the Faire in full costume. It's grown amazingly and wonderfully from the early days of a few buildings and human chess in the grass. My favorite new addition, honestly, is the "wreck room" where you pay to throw glass at a wall. Sooo worth it! And does any meal beat a turkey legge with beer drunk from leathern jack? The shows, the music, the shops, the food, the games... Well worth the price of admission. And if you check their website immediately, there's a sale on 2011 tickets running through 12/31/10. See you at the Faire! www.parenfaire.com/
- Good decks: Annie Bailey's has a great deck in the city, complete with outdoor bar and dining. Unfortunately, like many decks, it's become a smoker's haven. But it's open on Sundays, serves much more than typical bar food, and has surprisingly ample seating. http://www.anniebaileysirishpub.com/
- Good decks: My favorite deck in Lancaster is at The Conestoga. It's waterfront, rarely crowded, has reasonable prices, and serves decent bar food. Don't go there, I don't want it to become crowded. http://www.theconestoga.com/
- Restaurants: Try Fenz. Rarely does food make me moan. www.fenzrestaurant.com/
- The Three Phantoms: Much to my shame and disappointment, I've never seen "Phantom of the Opera." But last spring, at the last minute, I saw The Three Phantoms on tour in Hershey (www.hersheytheatre.com/). Holy magnificence! They were wonderful! Such voices, such presence... Wow. They sing their favorite Broadway show tunes, plus share a few mild insider stories about show biz. If you ever hear that they're near, make the effort. www.3phantomsinconcert.com/
- Hershey Park: Went twice, to make up for missing it a few years in a row. The Great Bear will always be my favorite rollercoaster. It's so smooth, it feels like flying. That ride alone is worth the price of admission. I went early (Mother's Day) and late (Halloween) so can't comment on the waterpark portion. The last time I was there in the summer, the water section--and the park in general--was a crowded un-fun mess. But going off season means I got to ride everything, with minimal waits, and my favorite stuff twice. http://www.hersheypark.com/
- Blue Man Group: I've been wanting to see them, but had no idea what to expect. I knew they were blue, and drums were involved. I like blue and drums. I took my son, who was reluctant, even irritated, to be dragged to this unknown thing. And we loved it. We were in one of the front rows, which was awesome because we were close enough to see the all-important facial expressions underneath the blue paint. (But far enough back not to be spattered.) We felt the drums in our souls. We danced, and were covered in confetti and toilet paper, and tossed around gigantic balls, and laughed ourselves silly. My son said, "I can't believe I ever said anything bad about this!" What a fun night! http://www.blueman.com/
- Cleopatra at The Franklin Institute: I had high hopes for this exhibit, because it's a National Geographic presentation and they always do spectacular work. This one... eh. It was OK. There are some great artifacts, and the fact that they had to pull everything out of the Mediterranean is remarkable. But fundamentally, Cleopatra wasn't a nice person (she married her brothers, had affairs with and children by multiple men, abandoned her troops during a war, and ultimately committed suicide) and they don't know much about her. They made an attempt to make the exhibit interactive, but it just didn't resonate for me. The exhibit is at the Franklin through Jan. 2, 2011. www.fi.edu/cleopatra/
[If you ever have a chance to see National Geo's Real Pirate exhibit, go. It's great. www.nationalgeographic.com/ng-events/exhibits/real-pirates/]
[And it's worth noting that I discovered for the first time that the Franklin has a full-sized, actual, real-life steam locomotive in their basement. You can ride it. OK, it goes about 10 feet, but still. It's pretty cool.]
- Titanic at Whitaker Center: OK, I'm a Titanic junky. I've seen the exhibit four times. I'd like to see the one in New York, because I've heard they have the most artifacts. I think the one I saw at the Cleveland Science Center was the best, but it was also my first. The exhibit is interactive and immediate and tells the story through images, feelings, sounds, even temperature. I love getting my ticket with a passenger's name and finding out at the end if my passenger lived or died. I love seeing pictures of the artifacts under water, and then seeing them in front of me, sometimes displayed as they were found. And every time, I wish like crazy that the ship hadn't sunk. www.titanictix.com/ and http://www.whitakercenter.org/
- Lancaster Science Factory: For a fun afternoon out with kids of any age, hit the Science Factory. It's a small but really good example of a hands-on science museum. The interactive exhibits are easy to understand without reading the cards, but the captions are actually interesting and informative. And the activities are fun, even for adults! www.lancastersciencefactory.org/
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We say Spamalot here in SJ and loved it. The touring group did a fabulous job and the audience, which is usually fairly under control and tame, got into it after a short bit and started singing along, laughing, and clapping. It was great.
ReplyDeleteI've seen Phantom in LA and ... somewhere else, which I can't recall. And I have the movie, which is decent.
When we come visit you, we'll have to go to Hershey Park and maybe one or two of these science places.