The old saying goes that perception is reality. But that tried-and-true adage can certainly be reversed — and the deeper our observation, the more we are likely to discover and learn. To that end, this week’s Fresh Start aims to broaden your field of vision. Want to insure that mediocrity doesn’t hold sway in your week? Check out the nationally-acclaimed arts festival, a swatch of Revolutionary War-era maritime adventure and irreverent, pop culture navigators that comprise the week’s events. Let appreciation, absurdity and dreaming guide your week in Cleveland.
It’s a Schooner!
Not since director Kevin Smith’s movie Mallrats has there been a reason to utter such a line. But this week’s Cleveland Tall Ships Festival makes the Port of Cleveland look more like Mutiny on the Bounty. Check out an intercontinental flotilla of historic, tall ship replicas starting Wednesday, July 7 and running through the weekend. One of the Great Lakes United Tall Ships Challenge series installments, this five-day offering floats a fleet of full-rigged ships, with barques, brigantines, and, yes, trading schooners that hearken back to Revolutionary War days. Family-friendly to the core, Tall Ships offers the Majestic Parade of Sail processional, youth sail training, maritime history, boat tours and more. Learn more here.
Raising Cain
As juried art shows go, the critically acclaimed Cain Park Arts Festival is among the country’s best. The striking Cleveland Heights venue celebrates this decades-old tradition of visual art, live music and gourmet food — all nestled in a leafy, garden party environment. That’s what the late founder Audrey Feinberg was aiming for when the festival hatched in the 1970s. Some 60,000 attendees are expected this year, which stands to reason: unlike other arts fests put on by companies, this hospitality-driven fête remains great because arts festival director George Kozmon is a working artist who understands exactly what participants and attendees are looking for. With more than 150 participating artists starting Friday, July 9, expect an accessible feast for the senses. Details here.
Pattonly Funny
Few comedians straddle insanity and reality quite like Patton Oswalt. The Virginia-born pop culturalist’s observations are always outrageous. Oswalt is well on his way to being revered like edgy comedians before him (e.g. Hicks, Kinison, Belushi) and does so with a flippant, Everyman energy and a Napoleon Complexity. Oswalt - the visionary behind the 2004 comedy album Feelin’ Kinda Patton - appears at the House of Blues this Friday, July 9. Think about an early start and late end on East 4th Street as bookends for uproarious fun. Learn more with a click here.
And if comedy is your bag…
… then this weekend is a feast for you. Beyond Oswalt’s one-nighter, unpredictable former MTV personality Tom Green and actor-comedian Jay Mohr are in town this weekend as well. The former has a three-show stand at Hilarities (at Pickwick & Frolic on East 4th Street) while the latter follows the same weekend schedule at the Improv in the Powerhouse on the West Bank of the Flats.
