It has been acclaimed as “bigger and better than ever,” but fans of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical The Phantom of the Opera are used to splashy and epic. What would it take to make the “new” production even more spectacular than the original? The answer is in more than smoke and mirrors – although there’s still plenty of each, too. Set in a Paris opera house, the musical about a disfigured and angry man who haunts it tours to Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N. Walker Ave., in downtown Oklahoma City. Celebrity Attractions presents the play, setting the 2014-15 season’s table with a host of new musical and theater shows. The Phantom of the Opera – with new character choices, direction and a design face-lift – opens Wednesday, Aug. 27, and closes on Sept. 7. Tickets are $40-$135, available at www.celebrityattractions.com
Ten-year-old Hannah Hewett, who hails from Tahlequah, is a national championship sprinter. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Ten-year-old Hannah Hewett, who hails from Tahlequah, is a national championship sprinter. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Hannah Hewett describes herself as “a bit of a diva,” but perhaps she has a reason: She is an award-winning athlete at the age of 10.
Hewett, who lives in Tahlequah, set the record for all four running events in the Junior National Disability Championship in Rochester, Minn., in 2013; and this year in Edmond, she took home the gold medal in all four sprint events (60, 100, 200 and 400 meters) and archery at the Endeavor Games. One of Hewett’s goals is to participate in the Paralympics one day.[pullquote]“I have probably always been competitive because I have always had to fight to keep up with everybody else,” Hewett says.[/pullquote]
Born with bilateral tibial hemimelia, meaning she was born without the tibia bones between her knees and ankles, Hewett has been a double above-the-knee amputee since she was nine months old. It may explain her competitive spirit.
“I have probably always been competitive because I have always had to fight to keep up with everybody else,” Hewett says.
In addition to being born without tibias, Hewett’s arms are fused at the elbow, which limits movement in her fingers. She has had three hand surgeries, and her family is looking into reconstructive surgery for her elbows.
Hewett has many other talents and skills beyond track. She’s also good at limbo and playing hide-and-seek. She also loves to swim and play basketball and soccer.
Kim Hewett, her mother, says that her daughter’s condition “has made us more in tune with others with disabilities. It has also challenged us to overcome our own shortcomings. There are no excuses.”
Her father, John Hewett, was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“Hannah has been an inspiration to him in overcoming his challenges,” says Kim Hewett.
“I once shared with her that I looked forward to the day when we would both be whole,” John Hewett says. “I would no longer have Parkinson’s, and she would have both legs. She pondered that for a moment and replied, ‘Daddy, I think I am pretty whole as I am.’”
Keep up with Hannah Hewitt and find out where she’s competing next on her Facebook page, “Hannah Can.”
The leaves are turning to their fall colors, and that means its time for some of our favorite festivals. India Fest brings the colorful culture and traditions of India’s diverse communities to Expo Square each year. The India Association of Greater Tulsa presents another year of dance and music performances, Indian clothes, food and henna painting on Sept. 6 (www.iagtok.org). The following weekend, take a trip to Temple Israel and its annual ShalomFest celebration of Jewish life, thought, culture and food. The event takes place Sept. 14 and includes music, entertainment, crafts and ceremony demonstrations (www.templetulsa.com).
The weekend after, three major festivals offer an array of experiences. The Tulsa Greek Festival brings America’s Hellenic culture, traditions and foods to guests at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church (www.tulsagreekfestival.com) on Sept. 18-20. Across the river, Scotfest drums up with Highland games and Scottish traditions set to bagpipes, drums and Celtic music from then and today at River West Festival Park (www.okscotfest.com) on Sept. 19-21. A short drive to Claremore and the Cherokee Casino Will Rogers Downs gets you to the Gatesway Balloon Festival, Sept. 19-20, and a weekend of hot air balloons, arts, crafts, helicopter flights, pony rides and more for the entire family (www.gatesway.org).
For three days last year at Tahlequah’s Diamondhead Resort, Red Dirt music fans made the first Medicine Stone Music Festival an unexpected success. Many realized that it would attract a more than decent turnout, but the lineup brought thousands to hear the top names in the genre play fast and hard by the Illinois River. Now that the word is out, this year’s Medicine Stone Music Festival (Sept. 11-13) is expected to build further on the reputation of this very-Okie musical excursion. This year’s festival will have Jason Boland & The Stragglers and the Turnpike Troubadours (both bands founded the event) along with Cody Canada & The Departed, Shinyribs, The Great Divide, Reckless Kelly, American Aquarium, Micky & The Motorcars, Red Dirt Rangers and a host of other acts. Whether camping on the grounds or dropping in for a few hours, guests get a sense of the Red Dirt soul by virtue of the waters, cliffs and woods that make up the surroundings that are uniquely Oklahoma. Single-day passes to the festival start at $20 and $35. Three-day passes are $60 each at www.medicinestoneok.com.
Fans of Downton Abbey are so addicted to the continuing saga of the Crawley clan that they wait a whole year for answers to simple questions. Will Lady Mary be happy again? Will former chauffeur Tom ever feel like part of the family? Will the missing Michael Gregson return to Lady Edith? Will that plotting underbutler Barrow ever get his comeuppance?
With so many questions in the air since the fourth series aired on PBS’s Masterpiece Classic earlier this year, followers of the English drama want answers. And Jessica Fellowes probably has them.
The niece of Julian Fellowes, the creator of Downton Abbey, Fellowes has spent a fair amount of time on the set, gathering material for her two books on the subject – The World of Downton Abbey (2011) and The Chronicles of Downton Abbey (2012), each offering a behind-the-scenes look at the lavish production and the very real history of the early 20th century English society it portrays.
Local fans will have the chance to query the journalist and editor this month. Tulsa Town Hall welcomes Fellowes as the first guest of its annual speakers series. Jessica Fellowes: Behind the Scenes of Downton Abbey opens the 80th anniversary season at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 101 E. Third St., on Sept. 19. The event is available through subscription to the Tulsa Town Hall season. This season also includes celebrated author Bill Bryson (A Walk in the Woods), Fareed Zakaria (journalist and host of CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS), James Bradley (author of best-selling book Flags of Our Fathers) and “Puzzle Master” Will Shortz (crossword puzzle editor of the New York Times). Subscriptions are $75 each. Each talk will be followed by a luncheon with the guest speakers. Luncheon tickets are $20 each. For more about the new Tulsa Town Hall season, visit tulsatownhall.com.
Take a big bite of the chorizo quesadilla with shrimp, an appetizer at Urban Roots. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Take a big bite of the chorizo quesadilla with shrimp, an appetizer at Urban Roots. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
For a restaurant that recently underwent a major makeover on national television, Urban Roots is feeling comfortable with its new atmosphere. Owner and Chef Chaya Fletcher opened Urban Roots to Food Network’s series Restaurant Impossible earlier this year to reboot the business she and her husband, Michael, started in 2010. After four years, the restaurant and homage to Oklahoma City’s Deep Deuce heritage had become better known for its outstanding live entertainment than for its kitchen creations, which some said fell short of the meticulously prepared, haute comfort food the chef had dreamed of creating.
After the episode aired in April, the world got to see the new Urban Roots and a fresh new attitude. When you walk in these days, the color and sophisticated touches continue to hint at the flavor and appeal of catfish and grits, Cajun-seared tilapia, juicy pork chops and gumbo ya ya. Favorites like chopped brisket sandwiches (braised with red wine and served with garlic slaw), buttermilk chicken and waffles and baby back ribs (covered in mango-chipotle barbecue sauce) are better, too. Entertainment is still part of the reason crowds pack Urban Roots on weekend nights, but it’s no longer the only reason. 322 N.E. Second St., Suite A, Oklahoma City. www.urbanrootsokc.com
Fall arrives this month, making it a great time to bake something scrumptious and healthy. A few popular baking apples include Rome Beauty, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith and Honeycrisp. No matter which you choose, all apples are full of fiber and antioxidants and have fewer than 100 calories. Apples are also good for people dealing with high cholesterol and a history of heart disease. Try this recipe for an indulgent, but healthy autumn-inspired dessert. – Jill Meredith
Luscious Baked Apples
2 large baking apples
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. chopped pecans
2 tbsp. raisins or dried cranberries
1/2 tbsp. butter
1/2 c. apple juice
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove most of apples’ cores with an apple corer, leaving a little fruit intact at the bottom of each to hold the filling.
In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, pecans and dried fruit. Place apples in an 8-by-8-inch square baking pan. Stuff each apple with the mixture. Top each apple with half of the butter and add the apple juice to the pan. Bake 30-40 minutes until apples are tender, but not mushy. Remove from the oven. Spoon the accumulated pan juices over the apples and serve.
The Spicy Southerner at Revolve Pizza Kitchen turns up the heat with spicy bourbon sauce.
Photo by Brent Fuchs.
The Spicy Southerner at Revolve Pizza Kitchen turns up the heat with spicy bourbon sauce. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
The Italian-inspired Revolve Pizza Kitchen is taking pizza in new directions – 360 degrees, to be exact. The pizza ovens at the latest Oklahoma City pizzeria operate on a combination of gas heat and wood-burning fire as each pizza is rotated during baking. The result is a delicious, homemade pizza with premium ingredients served so quickly it will leave your head whirling.
Revolve is the latest example of what Chef Eric Cooper calls the “fast casual” experience, and it’s already proving to be a popular addition to the ever-expanding array of culinary choices along the city’s Memorial Road corridor.
While the ovens may be Italian-built, the atmosphere and flavors reflect the Sooner state. Try the Sweet and Smoky Okie with house-made barbecue sauce, mozzarella, bacon, chicken and Gorgonzola cheese; or taste the Spicy Southerner with spicy bourbon sauce, corned beef and Sriracha. Of course, you can always put your own spin on a fresh pie. 5500 W. Memorial Road, Oklahoma City. www.revolvepizza.com
The prime rib sandwich with pub fries at The Pint on Cherry Street. Photo by Brandon Scott.
The prime rib sandwich with pub fries at The Pint on Cherry Street. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Tulsa’s Cherry Street has something for almost any craving, and chances are The Pint on Cherry Street can fix it. The new restaurant opened recently in digs previously housing the popular White Owl. The Pint offers hungry patrons a varied selection of appetizers, sandwiches, soups, salads and entrees along with a wide selection of beer on tap and more than 30 varieties of bottled beers.
Owner Andres Comacho, a Pennsylvania native, moved to Tulsa six years ago and worked at Bodean Seafood Restaurant, Southern Hills Country Club and The Mayo Hotel before opening The Pint. Wanting the space to feel more like a restaurant than a bar, Comacho replaced the upper level pool table with more tables. He also worked with the executive chef, Mitch Neely, to create a menu more upscale than what one is likely to find at a bar and pub. On the roster are house specialties such as mahi-mahi tacos with pineapple salsa, fish and chips, a buffalo chicken sandwich and a prime rib sandwich.
Desserts are equally as rich – try a chocolate chip cookie sundae or cherry shortcake. The Pint is also open for brunch on weekends. 1325 E. 15th St., Tulsa. 918.561.6119
Papa Ganouj’s escargot plate. Photo by Brandon Scott.
The humble coq au vin blanc is a delicacy at Papa Ganouj. Photo by Brandon Scott.
“I’ve been cooking as long as I can remember,” says Paul Wilson as he strolls through his new restaurant, Papa Ganouj. “When I was 12, I tried to invent a better hash brown for my grandpa.”
With bright gray and salmon-colored walls, a laid-back staff, oak ornaments salvaged from the Mayo Hotel and mismatched crockery, Papa Ganouj looks like your average hipster hangout. But the kitchen is another story.[pullquote]“I love doing simple peasant food,” says Wilson, “and then vaulting it to the next level.”[/pullquote]
There’s Heather Nail, who ran the kitchen at Doc’s Wine and Food and at Leon’s on Brookside. Seemingly at once, she sauces a plate of moussaka lasagna, chops a vaguely alien tropical fruit and seasons a frothy, pungent bouillabaisse with saffron, fennel and anise-flavored arak. There’s Roque Heidler, formerly of Juniper and Tavolo, stirring a bright, bubbling sauce of red pepper coulis as he uses his other hand to stretch handmade squid-ink pasta.
Papa Ganouj’s escargot plate. Photo by Brandon Scott.
“He’s our presentation guy,” says Wilson of Roque, who then uses a pair of tweezers to ornament an appetizer with orange zest, anchovies and Rose of Sharon petals from the bartender’s garden.
Wilson, himself a master of technique and presentation, was barely out of his teens when he started working his way up from a dishwasher at an elegant bistro in Minneapolis. He bet his coworkers – seasoned chefs from France – that he could land one of the most coveted cooking jobs in America. They laughed; they lost. He worked alongside famed French Master Chef René Bajeux in New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina. Back in his childhood hometown, he’s cooked at The Kitchen on Brookside, Lunabread and Juniper.
Wilson pauses to give directions to a sous chef. He starts dicing a humble yam. Many of the entrees are humble dishes – coq au vin, bouillabaisse, bourguignon, puttanesca – the French and Italian equivalents of chicken fried steak.
“I love doing simple peasant food,” says Wilson, “and then vaulting it to the next level.” 1328 E. Sixth St., Tulsa. www.papaganoujtulsa.com
