Local Expert
Hal Peat
Hal Peat is a travel journalist who has covered destinations and topics across North America, Europe and the Caribbean region for the past 12 years. His work has appeared in a wide variety of…
Hal Peat is a travel journalist who has covered destinations and topics across North America, Europe and the Caribbean region for the past 12 years. His work has appeared in a wide variety of both print and online media on both continents.
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No question that the term "Art Deco" has come to define much of Miami past and present in the global perception of our city. So just as appropriate that there is a weekend set aside at the beginning of the new year to celebrate some of the aspects around town that best exemplify the Art Deco legacy and its preservation. The 31st annual Art Deco Weekend 2008 will include music, films, lectures, parades, antiques and collectibles, and internationally recognized architecture tours to Ocean Drive. Events begin Friday, January 18 and runs through Sunday, January 20 on Ocean Drive between fifth and 15th Streets in the historic Art Deco District, the nation's first twentieth-century National Historic District.
Art Deco Weekend, sponsored by the Miami Design Preservation League (MDPL), will celebrate Broadway musicals from the 1930s and 1940s. This year, the annual festival's theme is "Anything Goes: Art Deco Taps its Toes," exploring a period when Art Deco and Broadway collaborated with a full complement of lecture and films, as well as photographic exhibitions. Art Deco Weekend 2008 also will offer antiques and collectibles, art and crafts, guided tours, musical attractions, the third annual "Light Up the Drive" opening night parade and "Arf Deco Weekend" dog promenade, food vendors, as well as performances and hands-on activities for children.
This year's Art Deco Weekend, in addition to its famed street fair and parades, will headline Broadway greats in the festival's programs. A special discussion panel will star top Broadway producers Manny Kladitis, Leonard Soloway and Miles Wilkins. Playbill President Philip Birsh will present a lecture on Broadway history. The "Light Up the Drive" evening parade will feature as Grand Marshal Broadway legend Doris Eaton, the last living Ziegfeld girl.
As part of "Anything Goes: Art Deco Taps its Toes," the event will celebrate when Broadway merged with Art Deco through musical performances and great cinema spectacles. The hours for the weekend festival are from noon to 11:00 p.m. on Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Saturday, and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday.
Other headline events include: Fantasy Theatre Factory Presents; Art Deco Weekend Free Live Concerts; Classic Cars; Free Classic Film Series; and Be A Broadway Star;
For a complete description and schedule of all events, visit the Art Deco Weekend online or call (305) 62-2014.
It's the perfect time of year and the balmiest of nights to stage anything like an outdoor celebration of Shakespearean works, with the heavens twinkling down on the immortal bard's timeless dramas and comedies each January around Miami's park venues for theater. In 2009, it's a journey into tragedy with the staging of Macbeth, which will be performed first in Miami Beach at Flamingo Park on January 9, 10 and 11. The play is next performed at the Coconut Grove's Peacock Park on the 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th of the month, followed by a final reprise at Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens on January 22, 23, 24 and 25. Best of all in these times, this classic drama is free to watch, just call locally the City of Miami's hotline at 311 for directions to each of the venues and show times.
This annual Shakespearan staging is presented by the plucky Shakespeare Miami company, which makes imaginative use of the city's backdrops and staging at hand to deliver some often interesting visual interpretation of Shakespeare's works. Aside from that, they also clearly strive for variety and contrast in theme and topic: last year's presentation, for instance, was "Much Ado About Nothing".
From the program itself, a few suggested do's and don't's to enhance your experience:
Do... Bring a blanket or low beach chairs.
There is no "seating" at Shakespeare in the Park.
An extra blanket comes in handy because
sometimes it gets a little nippy.
Do... Bring a picnic.
Pick up a dinner 'to go' from a local Restaurant
or have your neighborhood market make up
a gourmet picnic for you!
Do... Bring the family.
Our shows are perfect for kids 8 and up.
This production is a little more for older children.
There is realistic violence in this play including
Swordfights, verbal abuse and of course,
Macbeth loses his head in the end. There is a lot of
blood and there are scary witches, too, so
it is not a good show for toddlers.
Do... Bring some cash or a check to throw in the
donation basket! All funds go to our
education programs
Don't ... Bring tall chairs
unless you plan to sit towards the back of the field.
Don't ...Bring Dogs.
With picnics and people sitting on the ground,
dogs tend to annoy other patrons in the park.
Don't... Go back stage
to visit friends or family members
No one is permitted backstage without a staff ID.
Do... Find an usher to send flowers or notes
back stage, the actors appreciate it.
Now's the time to resolve to get in condition for your first outdoor Miami run of the year. Promoted by the newly launched regional fitness magazine SoBeFit and the SportClub/LA in Miami, the First Annual SoBeFit 5K Race is scheduled to happen on February 8, 2009. The route will take racers from the start-point at 8th Street and Ocean Drive in Miami Beach north for six blocks to 14th St., then bearing right onto Washington Avenue and heading north. Racers then approach a a turnaround just past 19th St., headinb back south on Washington. Along the way, participants get an eyeful of the boutiques and bistros alon Lincoln Mall, the off-beat chic of Espanala Way is just blocks past 15th, and a few feet from reaching mile two on the return leg. At the 5th St. point this loop route heads east toward the beach and the finish line.
At the end of your run, don't forget to claim your SoBefit gfit bag and hang around for the post-race fitness festival. On-hand for the fitness festival you'll find unbelievable raffle prizes; pancakes flipped by former Miami Dolphin All-Pro linebacker John Offerdahl; interractive tennis serve cage; puttings competitions; face painting for kids; relaxing massages; personalized stretches; health screenings; fitness activities; and of course, food, drinks and music.
The event starts at 7:30 a.m., all running enthusiasts are welcome. You can sign up online by February 7 for $25, or on the day of the race for $30. Discount rates for students under 18 are $15 and serniors 60 and over can do it for $20 Register online at www.active.com (keyword: sobefit). Race day packet pick-up and registration happens 6:00 a.m. - 7:15 a.m.
Some may find it surprising, but Miami does like to look outward when it goes inward to watch a movie - and why not, with a resident mosaic of citizens with earlier roots that reach back into all six continents. So the growth of annual film festivals that explore and reconnect local audiences to other shores is a phenomenon that's likely to continue even as the city itself evolves. One indicator of that is the Third Annual “Romance in a Can” Film Festival, presented by Eurocinema, February 6 through February 15, 2009 at indoor and outdoor venues throughout the greater metropolitan area.
This particular event will showcase 20 independent first-run foreign feature films, starring such international stars as Juliette Binoche, Julie Delpy, Carice van Houten, Giancarlo Giannini, Derek Jacobi, Tovah Feldshuh, and Irène Jacob and representing 14 countries, all making their premieres on U.S. soil. The 10-day event – the only festival of romantic films in the U.S. – will also include a tribute to the legendary Polish director, writer, and actor Krzysztof Kieslowski and a short film competition for film students from Europe as well as local Miami high schools. The program opens at the tropical Art Deco Raleigh Hotel in Miami and close at the legendary Barnacle’s State Park in Coconut Grove.
"Romance in a Can" – established by Red Chemistry Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the work of independent European filmmakers – pairs screenings of feature-length European films making their domestic debuts and the short film competition with an array of special events, while raising funds for youth arts programs. The award-winning short film will be purchased by Eurocinema for airing on its TV channel. Among the films that will be shown this coming year will be: “Love is All” (from the Netherlands), with Ms. van Houten; “Forever” (from Italy) with Mr. Giannini; “Bye Bye Blackbird” (from Luxembourg) with Mr. Jacobi; “Love Life” (from Germany and Israel) with Ms. Feldshuh; and “Blue,” “White,” and “Red” (from Poland), each directed by Kieslowski and starring, respectively, Ms. Binoche, Ms. Delpy, and Ms. Jacob. Other countries being represented at the festival are France, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Hungary, Russia, Estonia, and Finland.
Notes Red Chemistry's executive director, Isabelle Landsman, about the direction and ideal behind this now-thriving annual cinematic fest: “Preserving romance during Valentine’s week, far away from the war and violence, is my vision for the film festival, said Isabelle Landman, executive director of Red Chemistry. “Bringing something uplifting and refreshing, classy and glamorous – a program of comedies and artsy feature films from so many countries – should draw a very diverse audience in the very romantic town of Miami.”
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Romance in a Can Film Festival - information at www.eurocinema.com or www.romanceinacan.com
In fact, the legendary Fountainbleau Resort never went totally away. This defining landmark of Miami Beach glamor just took a few minutes off the center stage to undergo some minor billion dollar nip and tuck that has produced an impressive reentry to the spotlight it has held ever since its doors opened in the fifties. Its re-entry in 2008 in its fully renovated glory provides some needed excitement and spirit in a time when the travel industry here like elsewhere needs some uplift.
The property's grand lobby retains several signature details from the original 1954 structure that retruning guests will recognize, such as architect Moris Lapidus's soaring gold columns and bow-tie-motif flooring. Travelers who appreciate period authenticity can once again thank local city ordinances that mandate the preservation of such historic design details. Then there's other imposing and familiar features still greeting old-timers returning, such as the grand curving staircase, however there are new arrivals as far as fixtures intended to enhance the grandeur - if that's possible - such as the three oversized chandeliers still gracing the lobby. Another addition is the tropical grotto pool and waterfall. The circular Bleau Bar features a 360-degree bar and blue LED flooring. It's the arrival area where guests can order champagne before check-in, or deciding whether to take a full course dinner at designer restaurants like Hakkasan, Scarpetta and Gotham Steak.
Hi-tec is cutting edge here, with electronic touch screen maps positioned throughout the hotel, and iMac computers in each room, allowing travelers to order room service and book spa appointments. WIth more than 1,500 rooms, the majority are located in the original Chateau and Versailles towers, with the remaining 658 rooms caontined in the newer Tresor and Sorrento structures. Other in-room features and amenities include spacious showers, flat-screen TV and iMacs. Many of the rooms and 60 suites offer views of the Atlantic Ocean or the Intracoastal Waterway.
Prices don't come cheap here, starting at around $400 a night from the junior to one- and two-bedroom suties. The Fountainebleau's value, however, remains as much in what it manages to retain as in what it's gained. Even with the latest makeovers and upgrades to its public areas and guest quarters and amenities, we can't help but think that if any of the Fountainebleau Resort's long-gone stellar guests could come back to life and inspect the new digs for even a few minutes, they'd still feel as much in their element as they ever did amidst the early Fifties glamor.
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Fountainebleau Resort - 4441 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; Tel: (305) 538-2000
So you've already planned to dine with family on Christmas Day? All the more reason to kick up your heels and see in the New Year with something different out on the town. In fact, New Year’s Eve in the Brickell area just got hotter, so consider the dining menu, entertainment and ambiance on hand this coming new year at Andu Restaurant and Lounge. This fine eatery is taking the New Year’s Eve celebration one step further with a dining experience complete with live music and dancing. Andu’s New Year’s Eve will excite your senses and satisfy your cravings as Executive Chef Nate Martin presents a menu of Mediterranean cuisine with international influences paired with wines and signature cocktails. Using the freshest and highest quality ingredients, the menu will entice even the most discerning of palates. At midnight, the party will extend onto the outdoor patio with a DJ and a champagne toast.
The four-course menu begins with an amuse of Neo Tuna Salad (sashimi, smoked tuna and American caviar) paired with a French Rose Champagne. The menu continues with varied selections such as Prosciutto Wrapped Quail and Moroccan Spiced Lamb Shank paired with...wines. The menu ends with a tantalizing Red Velvet cocktail (raspberry vodka, Chambord, lemon and mango foam). For more detailed menu items, please see attached.
Price is $85++ a person and the pre-fixe dinner menu will be available from 5:00 pm – 11:00 pm (Andu will remain open until 4:30 am).
For more information, please call Andu Restaurant and Lounge at 786.871.7005 or visit www.andurestaurant.com. Andu Restaurant and Lounge is located at 141 SW 7th Street. Miami, Florida 33130.