Prospero (Catharine K. Slusar) and daughter Miranda (Hannah Gold). Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local

Last night, Shakespeare in Clark Park (SCP) opened its eighth season with “The Tempest” at the “Bowl” on 43rd Street and Chester Avenue. The packed crowd laughed and reveled in the Bard’s majestic epic, which is directed by Swim Pony Performing Arts Artistic Director Adrienne Mackey and stars Catherine K. Slusar as protagonist (or antagonist, depending on your view) Prospero–a lead role typically cast with a male actor. And, without a doubt, Sean Hoots of local outfit Hoots & Hellmouth exceeded expectations with his ethereal and enchanted music.

Make sure to catch “The Tempest” at Clark Park before it closes on July 28. The remaining shows are on Thursday-Sunday, beginning at 7 p.m.

Photo by Mike Lyons/West Philly Local.

A drawing of the proposed building at 43rd and Baltimore. The five-story section in the foreground would include first-floor retail.

The developers of 4224 Baltimore Ave. – across from Clark Park – unveiled drawings during a public meeting last night of a modern, glassy residential building that would include a terraced section that peaks at 10 floors and includes upscale condos.

The design also includes a 5-story section on the corner of 43rd Street and Baltimore Avenue with first-floor commercial units that would wrap around the structure and, if built, could house a large, street-level restaurant with outdoor seating along 43rd Street. A large rooftop terrace on this section would overlook the park.

The “if built” part is important. The development firm that is proposing the project, U3 Ventures, is a liaison between the community and the property owners, Clarkmore Group LLC, have not seen the drawings. There is no guarantee that the ownership group, which paid $3.5 million for the property in 2008, will go for the plan.

Clarkmore currently has as conditional permit to build a four-story, 92-unit apartment building with six parking spaces. That building would unlikely include any retail space. U3 is hoping the group can be persuaded to build a larger building that could support retail and underground parking. A large majority of the approximately 40 community members attending last night’s meeting gave tacit approval to the plan, which includes 108 rental units – mostly one bedrooms – and 55 resident-owned condos (though that number could drop considerably if the condos are built larger). Continue Reading

63-year-old Robert Jean-Louis who suffers from dementia and who went missing on Tuesday morning, has been found, according to a neighbor who knows his family.

Mr. Jean-Louis was found by the police on Wednesday night at about 10:30 p.m. and taken to the hospital where he later was reunited with his family. Many thanks to everyone who shared the alert about him and who helped look for him.

SEPTA announced today that the trolley tunnel to and from Center City will be closed from 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 2 until midnight on Monday Aug. 12. The 11, 13, 34 and 36 trollies will reroute to 40th and Market Streets where passengers can connect with the Market-Frankford Line, which will not be impacted by the tunnel work.

Shuttle buses that are currently being used along the Route 10 line will run to 40th and Filbert Streets during the repairs instead of 33rd and Market.

SEPTA crews will spend that week replacing overhead wire and doing ceiling work in the tunnel, according to a statement.

“We use the tunnel almost 24 hours a day, which means we have very limited opportunities to obtain track outages for extensive repair work,” SEPTA’s deputy general manager Jeff Knueppel said.

Editor’s Note: The trolley tunnel shutdown starts at 10 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 2., not at 10 a.m. as originally stated in the post.

Play On, Philly! students performing last year at Saint Francis de Sales School. (Photo Mike Lyons/West Philly Local)

The talented kids from Play On, Philly!, the innovative music and social development program based in West Philadelphia, will be playing live this Thursday, July 25 in a big ensemble concert. The concert will feature musicians from grades 1-9 who are participating in the program’s summer session.

Students in wind ensemble, string orchestra and full orchestra will tackle the Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona’s La Comparsa and A La Media Noche, a Puerto Rican folk tune. Paul Bryan, dean of the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music, will conduct the students, who concentrated on world music over the summer. The ensemble is made up of 120 students from St. Francis de Sales School, Freire Charter Middle School, the Jubilee School and West Philadelphia Catholic High School.

The performance begins at 7 p.m. at West Philadelphia Catholic High School (4501 Chestnut St.). Entrance through parking lot on 46th Street between Chestnut and Ludlow.

The West Philly-based Play On, Philly! began in 2010 at the Saint Francis de Sales School with 110 kids ages 6-13. The idea was to bring enrichment to their lives through music. Last spring renown jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis stopped by Saint Francis de Sales to talk to students in the program. Students go through a rigorous training program that includes three hours daily of after school instruction by some of the city’s best teaching musicians. Students enrolled in the tuition-free program learn an orchestral instrument and receive instruction in music theory, composition, music history as well as ensemble performance. Play On, Philly! hopes to establish a program in every city neighborhood.

Photo courtesy of Bartram’s Garden.

As we first reported last fall, the Bartram’s Mile project plan in Southwest Philadelphia is currently being drawn up. Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, Bartram’s Garden, and the Schuylkill River Development Corporation are creating the plan and they are asking for your input in two public meetings over the next few days, including one tonight (Wednesday).

The Mile is proposed as a 1.1 mile extension of the Schuylkill River Trail and adjacent neighborhood park space that will run from the Grays Ferry Bridge to 58th Street along the river. Public input has been sought throughout the first phase of the project and now that the next phase of design has begun, the project stakeholders want to invite you to give your input once again.

Design drawings were made in early 2013 to show early ideas based off the last round of public input. They can be found by clicking on this link and going to the “Phase I Conceptual Design Results.” The planners have updated these ideas and are now holding two civic feedback sessions where they will present the concepts and ask residents for their thoughts and opinions.

Here is more information about the meetings:

Wednesday, July 24
6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Bartram Village Community Room
5404 Gibson Drive
Same entrance off Lindbergh as Bartram’s Garden, then bear right instead of left

Monday, July 29
6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Bartram’s Garden
5400 Lindbergh Boulevard
Coach House

Dinner will be provided at both meetings. Staff will be divided up into various tables/stations to respond to specific questions. Please RSVP by writing to: praxis@design.upenn.edu or calling 215-573-8720.