The Weekend: Art, Slams, France and Meditation

BY  |  Thursday, Feb 16, 2012 3:00pm  |  COMMENTS (1)

Chain Gang (All Me), 2004 by Rembert

In honor of Black History month, the Montclair Art Museum is hosting a free screening of All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert tonight. In this moving documentary, the artist Winfred Rembert relives his turbulent life in the segregated South and the injustice and bigotry he experienced as recently as the 1960s and 70s. Rembert, now in his 60s, and film producer and Montclair resident Mark Urman will introduce this not-to-be-missed documentary that preserves an important, if often disturbing, chapter of American history. After the screening, film director Vivian Ducat, Rembert, and Urman will participate in a question-and-answer session.

All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert at MAM
Thursday, February 16 at 7 pm
Montclair Art Museum, 3 South Mountain Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07042
Free

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New Jersey Marriage Equality Act Passes in State Senate 24-16

BY  |  Monday, Feb 13, 2012 1:14pm  |  COMMENTS (35)

The New Jersey Senate just voted 24-16 on the Marriage Equality Act, or more formally, S1, the Marriage Equality and Religious Freedom Act. The bill will now go to the Assembly for a vote on Thursday, February 16. Governor Christie has vowed to veto any gay marriage bill.

According to Politicker NJ, “Two Republicans voted in favor of the bill (Allen, Beck), while two Democrats voted against it (Jeff Van Drew, Ron Rice).” Senator Rice is from legislative District 28, which covers Bloomfield, Glen Ridge, Irvington, Newark and Nutley.

In our poll, over 93 percent of Baristanet readers support gay marriage.

The Weekend: Champagne, Chocolate, Concerts and More!

BY  |  Thursday, Feb 09, 2012 3:00pm  |  COMMENTS (0)

I’m in the mood for love. Simply because it’s almost Valentine’s Day. To be honest, I really don’t like going out on the actual day, but I do like doing something romantic on the weekend before. And there are some great ways to spend some time with your honey this weekend.

Tomorrow night, grab your significant other and go to Arthur Murray Montclair’s Champagne Open House. If you’re a single, no worries, they’ll pair you up! You’ll get a dance lesson by one of their professional instructors and then a DJ will spin some tunes into the night. There will be lots of dancing, and even better, lots of champagne. I love champagna.

Circe Dunnell

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The Weekend

BY  |  Thursday, Feb 02, 2012 3:30pm  |  COMMENTS (3)

This has been a strange winter. It’s been warm, practically snow-free and it’s going so fast. It’s already February! Usually winter makes me want to hibernate, but with temps this warm, I’m going out much more often. Here are some ways you can get out this weekend.

The world premiere of Reparation by Gino Dilorio at Luna Stage happens next weekend on February 9, but you can get a sneak peak of the play about an “investment banker who has made a career by playing the race card finding himself out of options and out of friends” tonight, February 2, at the West Orange Public Library. Tony nominated actor Frankie Faison will perform a scene from Reparation followed by a discussion, led by Luna’s artistic director Jane Mandel,  with the playwright Gino Dilorio. It’s all part of WOPL’s Black History Month of sceduled events.

Scene from “Reparation” and Discussion
Thursday, February 2 at 7 pm
West Orange Public Library, 46 mount Pleasant Avenue, West Orange, NJ
Free. Advance registration is required. Sign up online or by calling 973.736.0198

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The Weekend

BY  |  Thursday, Jan 26, 2012 6:26pm  |  COMMENTS (0)

It’s Open Mic Night at Trend Coffee & Tea House in Montclair. Share your talent: poetry, spoken word, short story, music, comedy…anything goes. Anyone who has the nerve to get up and perform will receive a free large coffee. Or, just hang out and enjoy the show.

Open Mic Night at Trend Coffee & Tea House
Thursday, January 26 from 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm
Trend Coffee and Tea House, 411 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair, NJ 07042
Free

Also tonight in Montclair, MSU history professor and resident Zoë Burkholder will discuss her book Color in The Classroom at Watchung Booksellers. The book examines the way that American schools have created and disseminated specific ideas about race over the course of the twentieth century. Read our full review here.

“Color in The Classroom” with author Zoë Burkholder
Thursday, January 26 at 7 pm
Watchung Booksellers, 54 Fairfield Street, Montclair, NJ, 07042
Free

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The Weekend: Theater, Rock Concerts, Modern Dance and More

BY  |  Thursday, Jan 12, 2012 4:00pm  |  COMMENTS (2)

Lots to do this weekend in Baristaville! Theater, rocking concerts, modern dance performances…there is something for everyone.

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, a professional Theatre in Residence at the Baird Center in South Orange, will present the New Jersey premiere of Shooting Star by Steven Dietz. Never before seen in this area, Shooting Star tells the story of college lovers Elena Carson and Reed McAllister who have been snowed in overnight at a middle-America airport an have an unexpected and life-altering reunion.  Elena has stayed true to her hippie-ish, counter-culture path, while Reed has gone corporate and conservative.  As the night gives way to laughter, banter and remembrance, Elena and Reed revisit a past that holds more surprises than they imagined – and a present neither of them could have predicted.  During its run at Trinity Repertory Company in 2009, NPR Radio said, “Shooting Staris a work both funny and sad; a quick and sharp play about our lives, one that gives us all the fun and all the tears of our times.” Dreamcatcher’s production of SHOOTING STAR features Resident Acting Company members Harry Patrick Christian (Montclair) and Laura Ekstrand (Livingston), and is directed by David Christopher (Cranford). Scott McGowan (Maplewood) is Stage Manager, and Paula Clarkson (Metuchen) is Assistant Stage Manager.  The design team includes Jorge Arroyo (Montclair – Lighting), Wesley Krantz (Buffalo, NY – Sets), and Mike Magnifico (Lyndhurst – Sound).

Shooting Star
Friday, January 13 through Sunday, January 29. Performances are Friday and Saturday nights at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm
The Baird, 5 Mead Street in Meadowland Park, South Orange, NJ.
Tickets are $30 and can be purchased online or by calling Brown Paper Tickets at 1-800-838-3006. 

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Rally Brings Out Supporters, Local Officials in Favor of Charter Reform and Against the Proposed Hua Mei Charter

BY  |  Saturday, Jan 07, 2012 10:08am

On Friday, January 6, approximately 100 protesters, some with their children, joined with local officials at the Maplewood Community Center in DeHart Park to voice their opposition both to the proposed Hua Mei school, and to the charter school approval process in general. The rally had two objectives: to urge Acting Education Commissioner Chris Cerf to reject Hua Mei’s charter school application and to voice support for reform legislation that would give local control over the charter-school approval process.

Local officials who addressed the crowd included Former N.J. Gov. and (current) state Senator Richard Codey, Assemblywoman Mila Jasey and Assemblyman John McKeon.

Read more on Barista Kids.

The Weekend: A Rendez-Vous, Spicy Music, Classic Films and Lear

BY  |  Thursday, Jan 05, 2012 3:00pm  |  COMMENTS (0)

The holidays are over, everyone is back to work and school and, personally, this week was a little depressing for me. But thankfully, it’s almost over and I will use this weekend to have some fun and start 2012 off right.

A Rendez-Vous French wine & cheese party sounds like just the thing to get my spirits up. (I finally saw Midnight in Paris and I’m feeling like a Francophile.) The French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF)  has moved its NJ HQ to The Carriage House at The Georgian Inn, 37 North Mountain Avenue in Montclair. FIAF relocated from its previous home at the Montclair Historical Society to accommodate the growing demand for French-language education in Baristaville. Was it Petit Paris‘ macaroons that did it? Either way, people want more French. To celebrate, FIAF is throwing a Housewarming and Rendez-Vous French wine & cheese party tomorrow night from 6:30 pm – 9 pm and you’re invited.

FIAF Housewarming and Rendez-Vous Wine and Cheese Party
Friday, January 6 from 6:30 pm – 9 pm
The Carriage House at The Georgian Inn, 37 North Mountain Avenue, Montclair, NJ 07042
Free

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The Weekend: The Holidays Edition

BY  |  Thursday, Dec 22, 2011 3:30pm  |  COMMENTS (2)

With Hanukkah, Christmas happening at the same time this weekend, there’s not much going on that isn’t holiday related.But that’s what this time of year is all about isn’t it? Continue Reading

The Weekend: Window Wonderland, Rockin’ Parties, Old Time Christmas and Hanukkah Celebrations!

BY  |  Thursday, Dec 15, 2011 2:45pm  |  COMMENTS (1)

This is the last weekend before the holidays roll in, so get out and enjoy Baristaville!

Tomorrow night, Friday, December 16, it’s all about Window Wonderland! With more than a dozen downtown stores participating, and all kinds of entertainment lined up, the evening will offer you the most fun you ever had shopping local. Alan of the Porchistas is going to play a few songs. The Salvation Army Band will be on hand and Jazz House Kids Student Ensemble will provide jazz standards and holiday cheer in the atrium of the Clairidge. Plus, the same life-size baby T-Rex that wowed football fans at Giants Stadium last Sunday will be walking the streets of Montclair with a Santa hat, window shopping himself. He’s the mascot of Bloomfield-based Field Station:Dinosaurs, which opens in Secaucus next May. In addition to judging the windows, enjoying the music and the dino, many of the stores will have special treats. Check our Window Wonderland page for the 411 on the 07042 event. Continue Reading

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I would love to see Santorum get the nod. Maybe then the politically comatose members of society will wake up.
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