City officials were on hand for the grand opening of Pontiac Street Market on Monday, Nov. 6. The market at 918. E. Pontiac St. provides healthy, affordable food options in an area that’s currently defined as a food desert.
The grocery store comes after being identified as a vital need through several community Southeast Strategy Update meetings. It will provide fresh produce, meat, dairy, prepared foods, baked goods, a sandwich counter, and grocery pickup.
Community Development staff and food services company Sodexo met with representatives from nearby and surrounding neighborhoods and other community organizations to get input on the types of products and services the store should offer.
Market hours are 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday.
PFW professor stars in Urinetown
Purdue University Fort Wayne Professor Jeff Casazza is making his Fort Wayne theatrical debut in Urinetown the Musical, opening Friday, Nov. 10.
Playing the role of Officer Lockstock, Casazza has directed numerous productions at PFW since 2008 and is thrilled to make his Williams Theatre acting debut.
Some of his favorite acting credits outside of Fort Wayne include Amos in Chicago, Pilate in Jesus Christ Superstar, and numerous devised roles in Italy.
Urinetown, directed by John O’Connell with music directed by Holly Knott, runs through Saturday, Nov. 18.
It is a story set in the not-so-distant future when a terrible water shortage and 20-year drought has led to a government ban on private toilets and a proliferation of paid public toilets, owned and operated by a single megalomaniac company: The Urine Good Company.
In 2001, the musical was the winner of three Tony awards and the Drama Desk and Outer Critics’ Circle Awards for Best Musical of the Year.
Rated PG-13, tickets are available at pfw.edu/tickets.
One-act operas scheduled at PFW
Purdue Fort Wayne Visual and Performing Arts and Purdue Fort Wayne School of Music will hold two opera one-acts: Slow Dusk by Carlisle Floyd and Signor Deluso by Thomas Pasatieri in Rhinehart Recital Hall.
Slow Dusk is a precursor to Floyd’s celebrated opera Susanna. It takes place on the front porch of a farm in the sandhills of the Carolinas. Floyd tells the tragic story of Sadie and Micah, star-crossed lovers, who are members of different religious sects and their struggle to find hope for their relationship.
Signor Deluso is a comedy based on a play by Molière and is Pasatieri’s most performed opera. It is filled with laughs, jealousy, and farce.
Directed by Dr. Matthew Giallongo, performances are Friday, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 11, at 2:30 p.m. Admission is free for PFW students with ID, $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, and $5 for non-PFW students.
For information, go to www.pfw.edu/music.
Embassy shows geared toward children
Embassy Theatre will hold two shows for kids this week: Peppa Pig’s Sing-Along Party on Thursday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m. and Kidz Bop: Never Stop Live Tour on Friday, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets for Peppa Pig are $29-$60. Kidz Bop tickets run $35-$95 with VIP meet-and-greet packages available for $185 and $225 at fwembassytheatre.org or by visiting the Embassy box office.
Students help install disc golf course
Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation and Weisser Park Elementary School have teamed up to open the city’s newest disc golf course at Weisser Park.
The nine-hole course is a collaboration with students, the Fort Disc Golf Club, and Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation. The course offers a variety of levels of play from easy to more challenging.
“Weisser Park STEAM Magnet School fourth-grade students actively participated in constructing a disc golf course for the community, while concurrently absorbing the academic standards,” said Weisser Park Principal Melissa Plumb.
Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation now maintain six disc golf courses. The others are Shoaff Park, Swinney East and West, Tillman Park, and Bob Arnold Northside Park.
Fort Wayne Village Marketplace returns
Fort Wayne Village Marketplace will hold an upscale shopping event at SportONE Fieldhouse from 5-9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 10, and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 11.
There will be local businesses, artisans, designers, and stores with more 100 vendors to shop, including a food court.
Tickets are $8, with children 12 and younger getting in free.
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