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Weekend with the Arts
We capped off a busy weekend today.
Yesterday, we went to Apple Hill Theater to see its production of The Star Spangled Girl. I must admit, it's hard for me to give an objective review of the show, because one of my friends is one of the three members of the cast, but I think even if that wasn't the case I'd be writing that it was a great show--well-acted, well-directed, and a funny script by Neil Simon. My friend is great, his co-stars are too, and if you're in western Pennsylvania, you should go see their greatness with your own eyes. Tickets aren't free ($16 for adults), but it's still very much worth seeing. It runs next week, Thursday-Saturday, and the week following Wednesday-Saturday.
Today, went into Pittsburgh for a free concert at Schenley Park where they apparently have a free concert every Sunday from 12:30-3:30. The band was James, but not the same James that had a hit with "Laid" back in the '90s. Weird, huh? I thought there were rules about band names! In any case, this James put on a good show, mostly covers from the '60s and '70s: a couple Zeppelin tunes, some Beatles (and Lennon's "Imagine"), some Pink Floyd, plus a bit of Creedence, Roy Orbison, The Rolling Stones, and even Green Day, but also some of their own original songs, which we could have sworn sounded familiar, though perhaps we were fooling ourselves. James wasn't the James we expected, but it was well worth the price of admission. Seriously though, it would have been worth even more than that, and they really seemed like a nice bunch of guys, besides being good musicians.
The weekend proved to be a full one and a fine one.
I thought I'd also share with you the recipe Lauren made for our Friday night Shakespeare picnic: Artichoke Tarts
Lauren modified this recipe a bit from its original, which originally called for Wonton Wrappers instead of Puff Pastry, and she also doubled the recipe, saving some of the filling for later.
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Combine 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 8 oz cream cheese, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 T dijon mustard, half of a red pepper (diced), one 14-oz can/jar of artichoke hearts, and--if we'd had it--1/2 cup diced fresh parsley.
3. Using pre-cut Puff Pastry dough, fill with filling, fold over, and seal. Spray cooking spray on pan and bake until browned, approximately 15 minutes.