I hope this wonderful weather we're experiencing continues all weekend. If you're looking for something to do, check out Cage The Elephant at the House of Blues this Saturday. The band was in town with Silversun Pickups about a year ago and from what I hear they put on a great show.

"Cage the Elephant’s raucous live show — which made this red-hot Kentucky-bred band the talk of this year’s South-by-Southwest music festival, and led USA Today to single them out as a band not to miss at 2009’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival — is the perfect showcase for their buzzed-about self-titled debut album for Jive Records. Recorded over 10 days with Grammy Award-winning producer Jay Joyce, and a Top 40 hit when it was released on British indie label Relentless in the U.K. last June, the album is a genre-defying blend of rock n roll and raw youthful punk energy all propelled by Matt’s taunting, Dylan-esque rhythmic vocal delivery, Brad Shultz and Lincoln Parish’s furious twin guitar assault, and bassist Daniel Tichenor and drummer Jared Champion’s rock-steady funk grooves."

“The music comes from a pure place,” Matt says. We really like the energy of music that feels passionate, raw, unplanned emotion. That’s what we were really trying to capture in the studio.”

Aside from being able to hum a few bars of the song sharing its namesake, I didn’t know anything about the musical Xanadu before going to see it this weekend at Playhouse Square. I had heard that it was an award-winning comedy with some recognizable music, but I decided not to look into the plot, former performers or time on Broadway before seeing it for myself.

Heading in to take my seat in what was a sparsely populated upper balcony, I noticed the program said the performance would take place without an intermission. My initial thought was that it must be an incredibly long performance, but the two and a half hours flew by. The stage was set up as a sort of amphitheater with a roller skating area in the center, the orchestra above and stage right, and audience members sitting in tight sections of rows in a half circle facing the house audience.

Even though I've seen G. Love & Special Sauce several times, I'm still excited for the show in Cleveland on Wednesday March 10th. They've always put on a great performance and I'm sure this show will be no different. Tickets are available at LiveNation.com

Opening act: Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad

Wednesday 03/10/2010
Doors: 07:30 PM
Show: 08:30 PM
Prices:
$20.00 - GA standing room - Advance
$25.00 - GA standing room - Day of show
$29.50 - Balcony Reserved seating

Hope to see you there!

Help support the Cleveland International Film Festival by attending the Happy Hour Fundraiser at the Velvet Dog on March 4. Complimentary appetizers and Finlandia and Jack Daniels cocktails for the first hour. Hope to see you there!

You can RSVP on facebook.

Here are the details:

"Come on out to Velvet Dog and support your favorite Cleveland pastime.... The 34th Cleveland International Film Festival!!! The festival takes place March 18-28th at Tower City Cinemas downtown. Every year, they have a challenge match program where a sponsor matches every dollar that CIFF raises. The film festival is the Cleveland Film Society's biggest fundraiser of the year, so every dollar counts.

The event will kick off at 5:30, and from 5:30-6:30 there will be appetizers and complimentary Finlandia and Jack Daniels cocktails, courtesy of Ca$h Apparel. Enjoy good friends and special guests to be named later.

***This event is totally FREE! We will be donating a portion of the proceeds to the CIFF***

More info to come on other partners and special guests, but save the date!!!

Sponsored by: Ca$h Apparel, CIFF, Downtown Cleveland Alliance Luxe Lifestyles, Sprout Connections, Film School Rejects

The 2010 I-X Indoor Amusement Park runs from March 26 - April 18. Spanning more than 20 acres, there are more than 150 amusement park rides, carnival games and other fun attractions.

Here are the ticketing options if you plan on attending this year:

Orchid Mania, Cleveland Botanical Garden's annual ode to nature's most exotic plant, returns to the Garden Saturday, February 27 through Sunday, March 28. The Garden is located at 11030 East Boulevard in University Circle. Visitor hours are 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday; the Garden is closed on Mondays. The exhibit is free with general admission to the Garden: $7.50 for adults, $3 for children ages 3-12, and free for members and children under 3.

Now in its 7th year, the Garden's orchid show offers a welcome late winter respite and the opportunity for visitors to see hundreds of dazzling blooms in all their staggering variety, color, shapes and sizes. By popular demand, hundreds of orchids will once again be displayed in fanciful ways in the naturalistic setting of the Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse. And in keeping with the unlimited floral design possibilities inherent in using orchids, a dramatic, contemporary "orchid forest" will greet visitors upon entering the exhibit.

The 34th Annual Cleveland International Film Festival iPhone App is now available.

With this app you can search the film festival movies by title, category, program or day. It allows you to view the details, images trailers and up-to-the-minute screening information for all 240 films.

This year's event is being presented from March 18-28, 2010 at Tower City Cinemas in downtown Cleveland.

Download the official app here for free.

For details, ticket information, memberships, and donations, please visit www.clevelandfilm.org

Celebrations abound this weekend—from Valentine’s Day to the Brazilian Carnaval. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect for a night out at Cleveland’s Playhouse Square to experience the warmth and realties of a Manhattan-based Latino neighborhood through the vibrant rhythms of salsa, meringue and hip hop during my first off-Broadway performance of the Tony-award winning musical In the Heights.

The new musical, which hit Broadway in 2008, opened in Cleveland last week, and I was able to catch the first Saturday performance last night along with an energetic, nearly full house. We were only in our seats long enough to briefly appreciate the grungy, layered scenery depicting a time-worn Washington Heights neighborhood, complete with a George Washington Bridge backdrop and the realistic streaming of morning sunlight before the performance was underway.

If you haven't had the opportunity to attend the Cleveland Film Festival in the past years, I strongly urge you to attend this year. I guarantee you will have a remarkable experience. It's not to early to start planning for the 10 day event. Here's how you can support the upcoming festival by purchasing a membership.

Film Student – $25.00 – With valid ID
•Same as Film Buff Single benefits

Film Buff Single – $55.00
•Advance mailing of CIFF Program Guide before distribution to the general public
•Opportunity to buy CIFF tickets before they go on sale to the general public
•Discounts on CIFF tickets and merchandise
•Discounts on Film (And Other Arts) Feast events
•Other special offers and discounts

Film Buff Dual – $85.00 – For two people in the same household
•Same as Film Buff Single benefits

Film Fanatic – $125.00
•All Film Buff benefits plus
•Two vouchers exchangeable for tickets to CIFF films of your choice (restrictions apply)
•Two tickets to see films of your choice at The Cleveland Cinematheque (restrictions apply)
•Two tickets to see films of your choice at Cleveland Cinemas theaters (restrictions apply)

If you are looking to celebrate April Fools Day, you can do so by attending a concert at Cleveland State's Wolstein Center. Daughtry, one of the most successful American Idol alumnus, will be bringing his tour here with Lifehouse pegged as his opening act. Tickets will be priced $47.50 and will be available via Ticketmaster on Friday January 22nd.

Daughtry is touring the album Leave This Town which was released last summer. The 30 year old says he is excited about the upcoming dates saying:

"Growing up, you dream about singing one of your songs in front of a packed house. I still get chills when we're playing and I hear the crowd singing louder than we are."

Here is the complete tour itinerary: