Pittsburgh's Quantum Theatre Staging Grammy Winning Chamber Opera by Argentinean Composer Golijov

To contact us Click HERE
Quantum Theatre – known for staging its productions in unique places that aren’t theatres – will present the unique Grammy Award-winning chamber opera Ainadamar by Osvaldo Golijov (Grammy winner in 2006 for best classical contemporary composition and best opera recording). Opening night is scheduled for Oct. 19 in East Liberty Presbyterian Church.

With Ainadamar, Quantum Theatre creates a chamber opera in the tradition of 2010’s acclaimed Maria de Buenos Aires, reassembling many of the artists from that work, including directors Andres Cladera and Karla Boos; performers Raquel Winnica Young and Carolina Loyola-Garcia; and designers Tony Ferrieri, Joe Seamans and Richard Parsakian.

Golijov’s haunting score adopts many flamenco motifs and has a libretto by theatrical giant David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly). Mezzo Raquel Winnica Young and dancer Carolina Loyola-Garcia are joined by sopranos Katy Shackleford Williams, Leah Edmondson Dyer, Erica Olden, and Lara Cottrill, contralto Daphne Alderson, and a sizable orchestra, under Cladera’s direction.

The story:
Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca died at the hands of Franco’s fascists, though his body was never found. Granada’s “fountain of tears” – “ainadamar,” in Arabic – has become the sacred, attributed site of that murder. Lorca’s life as a young artist at the eve of the Spanish revolution and his relationship with Margarita Xirgu, the great Catalan tragedian who was his muse, form the story of the opera. A flamenco-based score - Deep Song, as it’s called – articulates the pounding of horses’ hooves, the guns of the Falangists, and ultimately, the powerful, undeniable cry for freedom that could not be silenced.

Katy Shackleford Williams stars as Margarita Xirgu and the opera begins as she steps onstage in the 1960’s, years after Lorca’s death, for yet another star turn as Mariana Pineda, the historical figure Lorca memorialized in his first play, which had brought them together. Lost in memories, she tells about events thirty years earlier to the student actresses who form a circle of disciples around her, and then assume the personalities she recalls.

Interestingly, the role of Lorca is to be played by a mezzo (Winnica Young), perhaps in a nod to Lorca’s homosexuality – Xirgu was a platonic muse, and Lorca’s evolution as the voice of repressed peoples was in part engendered by his own marginalization as a homosexual in Franco’s time. Xirgu cannot bring him back. But in the opera’s taut 90 minutes, she lets go of her guilt at being unable to prevent his death, and leads a celebration of the freedom he brought to the world.

Boos and Cladera have collaborated on past Quantum productions Candide and Maria de Buenos Aires. Cladera, a native of Montevideo, Uruguay, is co-director of Microscopic Opera in Pittsburgh and currently makes his home in Denver. East Liberty Presbyterian Church is an historic property of monumental spaces filled with meaning for its congregation and the many communities of Pittsburgh which use the building. The opera will be sung in Spanish with English surtitles.

Video design by Joe Seamans will enhance the work with images. Sound design is by Ryan McMasters. Special events occurring through the run of the show include: Community Night, an invited rehearsal for East Liberty residents and groups on October 16; Post Show Discussion with director and cast on October 21; Ladies Night on October 23, a women’s-only viewing with a pre-show gathering; and Grapenuts Night, TBD, which includes a special pre-show wine-tasting.

Source: Quantum Theater

Quantum Theatre
218 N. Highland Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
(412) 362-1713
www.quantumtheatre.com
Karla Boos, Artistic Director

Quantum Theatre to open Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar – a chamber opera with libretto by David Henry Hwang; music direction by Andres Cladera; stage direction by Karla Boos
Who: Quantum Theatre
What: Ainadamar by Osvaldo Golijov, libretto by David Henry Hwang, music direction by Andres Cladera; stage direction by Karla Boos
When: October 19 – November 3 (Opening and Press Night October 19) Note unusual schedule: performances Oct. 19, 20, 21, 23, 26, 27, 28, 30, Nov. 2, 3, all at 8pm.
Where: East Liberty Presbyterian Church (116 South Highland Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15206) (map link)
Tickets: ShowClix 1-888-718-4253; www.quantumtheatre.com or www.showclix.com/event/229382;
$35 - $48 with limited $18 student tix.

Carnegie Mellon Launches Energy Innovation Institute; New University-Wide Research Initiative to Meet Challenges of Changing Global Energy Mix

To contact us Click HERE

Carnegie Mellon University has launched the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation, a major research and education initiative focused on improving energy efficiency and developing new, clean, affordable and sustainable energy sources. The institute was made possible by a lead gift from CMU alumni Sherman Scott (E’66), president and founder of Delmar Systems, and his wife, Joyce Bowie Scott (A’65), a trustee of the university. The institute is named for Sherman’s father, Wilton E. Scott.

Energy is a crucial sector of the economy, and, if anything, it will be even more important in the future. A report issued this week by the Allegheny Conference on Community Development highlighted an acute need for energy-related workers before the end of this decade. Through its research and education programs, the institute will develop new innovative energy technologies and create an improved understanding of how to promote their wide adoption through better regulation and public policy. 

“The Scott Institute is a university-wide effort that brings together more than 100 CMU professors and researchers to solve some of our toughest energy challenges,” said CMU President Jared L. Cohon. “I thank Sherman and Joyce Bowie Scott not only for their generous gift, but also for their vision in helping to create this institute. They realize the fundamental importance of developing sustainable energy solutions for America and the world.”

The institute will support teams of CMU engineers, scientists, economists, architects, policy specialists and others to tackle a range of issues, including developing more efficient energy solutions that reduce carbon emissions; smart grid technology to enable the use of large amounts of variable wind and solar power; and new advanced materials and processes to produce and store energy, increase efficiency and reduce waste.

“By bringing together experts from a range of disciplines, Carnegie Mellon is the perfect place to help meet the energy challenges of the future,” said Sherman Scott, who founded Delmar Systems in 1968 and built it into one of the world’s leaders in mooring systems for the offshore oil and gas industry. “Energy is a precious resource, and Carnegie Mellon’s systems approach can create solutions that ensure we produce and use energy more efficiently.” 

CMU faculty and researchers have a successful history in creating innovations in the energy sector. For example, its faculty’s research on carbon capture and sequestration has helped California provide electricity without greenhouse gas emissions and helped protect the U.S. electric system from cyber attacks. Jay Whitacre, an associate professor of materials science and engineering, and engineering and public policy, developed a novel sodium-ion battery capable of storing power for later use in the electrical grid. He founded Aquion Energy based on that technology and will be opening a manufacturing plant near Pittsburgh next year. 

Granger Morgan, the Thomas Lord Professor of Engineering and head of CMU's Department of Engineering and Public Policy, will serve as director of the Scott Institute and Andrew Gellman, head of Carnegie Mellon’s Department of Chemical Engineering, will serve as associate director. 

“In energy, Carnegie Mellon is one of the world’s leaders in smoothly combining technology and policy-focused research,” Morgan said. “This allows us to avoid abstract policy discussions and focus on creating strategies that give the private energy sector the right incentives to advance secure, reliable and low-environmental impact energy sources.”

Located in the resource-rich Western Pennsylvania region, the institute will be based in Sherman and Joyce Bowie Scott Hall, which is being built near Hamerschlag Hall on CMU’s Pittsburgh campus. The building also will house CMU’s Biomedical Engineering Department and a new nanotechnology research facility. A groundbreaking ceremony will be held at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 22 at the site. 

Like Carnegie Mellon, the Scotts epitomize the marriage of technology and the arts. The couple met at CMU, with Sherman earning his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering, while Joyce earned a fine arts degree.

In addition to the Scotts, CMU has received support for Scott Hall from CMU alumni John Bertucci (E’63, TPR’65) and his wife, Claire Ruge Bertucci (MM’65); CMU alumnus Jonathan Rothberg (E’85) and his wife, Bonnie Gould Rothberg; and the Eden Hall Foundation. 

The Scotts’ gift continues a history of alumni support for CMU’s energy and environmental initiatives. In 2004, Carnegie Mellon Trustee W. Lowell Steinbrenner (E’55,’60) and his wife, Jan, made a gift to establish the Steinbrenner Institute, which develops and enhances the impact of environmental research and education through graduate student fellowships and grants to fund innovative sustainability projects.

CMU also has benefitted significantly from its collaboration with the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), a part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s national laboratory system. As a member of the NETL Regional University Alliance, Carnegie Mellon has partnered with NETL in research, substantially strengthening its energy programs.  


Source: Carnegie Mellon University

###

GlobalPittsburgh Kicking Off Year-End Equipment Campaign on Pittsburgh Foundation's Day of Giving Oct. 3

To contact us Click HERE
GlobalPittsburgh will launch a special fundraising campaign on Oct. 3, the PittsburghGives Day of Giving, when all donations will be partially matched by the Pittsburgh Foundation.

Money raised on that day and through the end of the year will go toward the purchase of two important pieces of officeequipment to increase the efficiency of producing program materials for GlobalPittsburgh's visiting internationaldelegations, and two custom-made signs to raise our visibility at community events. You can learn more about our entire wish list below.
Yourinvestment in GlobalPittsburgh will help us continue the momentum that we havebeen building in our three core programs: 

•  Hostinginternational delegations through the U.S. Department of State and otherprogramming organizations, and encouraging ongoing economic, educational and cultural linkages betweenthese visitors and our community.
• Workingwith area colleges, universities and English Language programs to attractinternational students to the region through our Study Pittsburgh initiative.
• Arranginghomestays and connecting international students and professionals withPittsburgh families and individuals, companies and organizations through ourGlobalPittsburghCONNECT events and activities.

Last year, GlobalPittsburgh had a banner year of programming, arranging 40 itineraries for 235 emerging leaders from around the world.  We also arranged 137 homestays (totaling nearly 5,000 nights) throughout our last fiscal year. Our international delegations spent more than 800 hotel nights in the Pittsburgh area totaling more than $108,000 at the government room rate, including more than $14,000 in local taxes.

Please keep GlobalPittsburgh in mind as you plan youryear-end giving. We appreciate your support of our programs, which providesvaluable benefits and international contacts for the companies, organizationsand people of the Greater Pittsburgh Region. Our work relies on having the technology to communicate and sendinformation to hosts, professional resources, and visitors in our region andthroughout the world.
Your investment will go even further on Wednesday Oct. 3,2012, the Pittsburgh Day of Giving, when the Pittsburgh Foundation will beenhanced by a pro-rated portion of matching funds totaling $750,000. You must pay with a Visa or MasterCard, and the minimum donation is $25. Only donations made on Oct. 3 will be matched. You canlearn more by clicking on http://pittsburghgives.org/and searching for GlobalPittsburgh (Pittsburgh Council for InternationalVisitors).

Donations can always be made to GlobalPittsburgh by going to www.globalpittsburgh.org and clicking on SUPPORT GLOBAL PITTSBURGH on the right side of the home page and using our secure credit card payment system.

And what better way to join or give the gift of a GlobalPittsburgh membership than on the Oct. 3 Day of Giving? If you join or buy a gift membership on that day, your membership will extend until the end of 2013 (a two-month bonus). Just let us know after you make your on-line contribution.
Our wish list:Printer/Copier –GlobalPittsburgh’s operations, particularly preparing for the visitinginternational delegations that we serve, would be far more efficient if we hada color laser printer/copier capable of collating pages. We currently use alow-end laserjet printer to make large print runs of program packets. As asmall, three-person organization, we currently spend an excessive amount oftime printing and collating our documents. A higher-quality printer wouldenable us to produce more materials in-house, allowing us to put more staff andvolunteer time into our programs, which produce economic and cultural benefitsfor the people, institutions and businesses of the Pittsburgh region. Estimated cost (with service agreement): $3,500
Digital Projector– We often need a digital projector to make presentations to visitingdelegations in our office or to outside groups to convey information orpublicize GlobalPittsburgh and regional activities. We currently have to borrowa projector or check with hosts to see if they have compatible equipment. Owningour own digital projector would enhance the quality of services we provide tovisiting delegations, and reduce staff time spent coordinating the use ofthird-party equipment.Estimated cost: $500
GlobalPittsburghBanner – We would like to have a large (6 feet long), heavy-duty,all-weather banner with the GlobalPittsburgh name and web address to use atevents where we may have a table and need to draw attention to our location. Thiswould help us increase our visibility and improve our ability to serve thecommunity.Estimated cost: $100
GlobalPittsburgh FloorDisplay Sign – We would like to have a roll-up floor display sign tohighlight our services and benefits to use at events where we may have a presence.This would help us increase our visibility and improve our ability to serve thecommunity.Estimated cost: $400

Invasion Fleet, Terra Cotta Yinzers, PARKing Day, MC Escher in Greenfield

To contact us Click HERE

09/21/12 33# 231m

Started at sunrise at the Bastille, and as we rounded the corner after the Science center we encountered the well-known sterncastles of the Nina and Pinta moored on Pittsburgh's NorthSide:


Crossed to downtown, rode along First Avenue and found another Shepard Fairey mural:


And across the street we found what we were looking for, a courtyard sculpture garden of Terra Cotta Yinzers:


Jail Trail, Junction Hollow Trail, on Joncaire Street to see the Iron City Bikes mural, by L. Stock and T. Adoki, at S.Boquet and Joncaire in Oakland:


This is a commercial mural, but I'm including it BVOCD (by virtue of curator's discretion); located on Oakland Ave. and Forbes in Oakland.



Oakland mural, Sennot and Atwood Streets in Oakland, an MLK Mural by Kyle Holbrook and others


"Interpretations of Oakland", 3609 Forbes, a tribute to Mr. Rogers by John Laidacker:
Personally, I found the dissolution into red spheres a bit disconcerting and pseudo-sanguinary, and I wonder if the red/white flow isn'ta flirtation with the vision of Faustina Kowalska.


Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson in a Starbucks doorway on Atwood and Forbes



PARKing Day, FLOCK of CYCLES, Forbes Avenue. Mini-gold and sugar cookies. Got to see Marko, and meet Mr. Marvelous.




"All In A Day", 2345 Murray Ave in Squirrel Hill, by Leslie Ansley and Monique Luck:


We continued south on Murray and rode over the top of the Squirrel Hill bridge, I've never been south of Forward on Murray. Saw the Good Grief! Center which seems like a very cool thing which I'd never heard of.


"Connected" by Will Schlough, 4301 Murray in Greenfield, in a manner reminiscent of MC Escher:



Lunchboxes, mural at Hough's, 563 Greenfield:



Community Drug Mural, Greenfield Ave and Coleman St, Greenfield:


Greenfield - Hazelwood Boundary Mural, Greenfield Ave and Second Ave.


We joined the Jail Trail at Swinburne and saw volunteers working on the undergrowth along the trail. Continued north and encountered an ongoing hostage situation at Gateway Center, which was later resolved without injury.

We detoured due to the closed roads around the hostage scene, and tok the Convention Center Trail along the Allegheny. The Strip District was a bit over-crazy with Wholey's 100th Anniversay, so we avoided the main streets and worked our way past the 40th Street Bridge.


BikePGH's PARKing spot included bike registration, Bike-Toc-Toe, and some friendly bike advocacy chat.



This is the Allegheny Riverfront Greenway project's PARKing spot:


"Yarn Over Society", a group of militant Yarn Bombers, had a knitting park:

Glorious Glide

To contact us Click HERE
231# 63m

Joined D^e, D^o, and B in Confluence Pa for breakfast at Sisters Cafe. A good meal as always; took a photo of a few murals on their building.

Stopped in Confluence Cyclery for some jersey shopping and then we got underway. We rode east and climbed to Rockwood under skies that threatened rain, and occasionally there was a very light schpritzing, less than a drizzle. The best thing about the weather was the very cool temps.

Between Confluence and Rockwood we encountered this gentleman on a recumbent heading to Confluence to watch a friend participate in the Garden Tractor Pull. There was a lot of interesting aspects to his recumbent, but most interesting of all was the two carbon-fiber masts that support a Senz umbrella which he uses for shade. I'd never heard of Senz before - they're shaped like an airfoil and good up to 60 knots. It's amazing what's out there.

Took a break at the Rockwood trailhead and then started off to Meyersdale. Had second breakfast at the GI DayRoom, which IMO is consistently the best breakfast on the DC-Pittsburgh corridor. Rendezvoused with M and J.

The last seven miles from Meyersdale up to Deal seemed more moderate than the previous slope. We crossed the Eastern Continental Divide and then began the Glorious Glide, descending for 24 miles into Cumberland. The temperatures were cool all day but I changed into full-fingered gloves for the descent and I was glad I had them.

We checked into the trailside Fairfield Inn/Marriott, bike-friendly and very good as always. Had dinner at Crabby Pig, which was also good.

Trail conditions were excellent, the weather although threatening was good. The bikes did well and the company was good. 63 miles.

Sept 15, 2012 Week 37 this week: 218 miles

231#

3rd Qtr 2005 miles 17.9 mi/dayqtd

2012: 5023 miles

A Cold, Clear Gravity Demo

To contact us Click HERE

09/23/12 73m

Woke early to a clear, cold (48F) morning in Cumberland. Enjoyed the hotel breakfast, filled my bidons with Water-Cran-Apple mix, glommed a few apples for a later snack, made my morning bike tweaks outside along with a group of touring motorcyclists who were also getting ready for their ride.

Some of us planned to ride up the hill to Frostburg and join the others coming up on the excursion train. We made what seemed like remarkable time, we got up to Frostburg in two hours and we weren't trying to make great time it was just a very pleasant cold morning and we cranked it out.

There was a bit of lag-time waiting for the train group, so we hung around the Trail Inn and tried not to get in their way too much. It was a bit too cold out for a bike nap.

The Trail Inn gets a headcount when the train departs and today's was 130 passengers. I was amazed when they told me that yesterday (Saturday) the train brought 500 people up the hill, which is a pretty big injection of people into a small train station. Peaks and valleys and staffing, all hands on deck.

We realized that there would be a rush for sandwiches etc when the train arrived, so our contingent on the train texted us their lunch orders from the online menu and we put their order in just before the train arrived, that seemed like it got us on our way a bit quicker. The bike car on the train was well organized and everybody seemed to enjoy the ride up the hill.

Was pleased to meet a trio of riders who I recognized as guys who work at the local REI store at Settlers Ridge, very nice folks and extremely cool to see them out in the field representing.

Between this and that we ended up in two groups, a breakaway group on the front and a sweep rider. Once we crossed Deal (new SST, btw) and started descending the speeds picked up, the conversation resumed, and it was a lot of fun riding fast to Confluence.

Bike + Laser = Personal Bike Lane Generator

To contact us Click HERE
9/24/12 233# 0mFrom the "I'm still waiting for my jetpack" file: In 2009, the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) awarded the prestigious Gold International Design Excellence Award (IDEA) to Alex Tee and Evan Grant for their design of a prototype called "LightLane", a portable optical bike lane generator.



The Feb. 2009 WIRED magazine ran a story about the LightLane:

Fed up with seeing friends getting clipped by cars, the designers at Altitude combined two things we love — bikes and lasers — to create an instant bike lane and make nighttime cycling a whole lot safer.

Their bike-mounted gadget, called LightLane, beams two bright red lines and the universal symbol for cyclist on the pavement, neatly delineating a bike lane to remind motorists to yield a little space.

This caught my inner bike-geek's attention and I developed a serious case of gadget lust. I don't do a lot of night road riding but I do a little bit of it, and I really try to stack the odds in my favor (as you can probably tell from this rear-view photo of one of my bikes from a few years ago).

I've been waiting to get one of these in the way that I've been waiting for my jetpack and my gyrocopter-car. Every now and then I'd consult the Google and see if the vision had become a product yet.

Turns out, it takes about 3.5 years to go from vaporware-concept with mockup photos into an actual physical product in a box in your hand delivered by the UPS truck. The light I got is from a Korean company.

My initial experience has been that it's a very solid-built light, not flimsy, and set up for a seat-post mount only. There are two switches, one for the LED tail lights (steady or blinky) and another for the laser bike lane; you can operate them simultaneously or independently. Just as a standalone seatpost rear light, it's a good rear light.

The raison d'etre, though, is the laser light lane and it's a major attraction. On a dark street it does a real good job of depicting a bike lane on either side of the bicycle (no international bike logo, like the initial prototype though)

According to the package, there are max power constraints for the lasers used in this kind of device (5mW ?) and in bright ambient light like a streetlight, the visibility of the laser is significantly reduced.

It's a good seatpost LED light. The projected laser light lane is major bling, it's very effective in a dark setting, and it increases your visible cross-section significantly as the bike moves. In that way, it's a bit like the glowkits on some bikes. OTOH, it does wash out under streetlights.

Verdict: Very good as a second light; the laser gets major geek-factor points for Freds (like me) who can't get enough rear visibility and who like to play "gadget show-and-tell". (link)

What I really want is a "Back To The Future" bike lane generator, which of course would require something like 1.21 gigawatts:


Still waiting on my jetpack. I saw a man flying one at the 1964 Worlds Fair, how can it be taking so long?