what to do • where to go • what to see February 13–26, 2006 The Officficialial GuGuideide to BOSBOSTONTON Romantic BOSTON 8 Great Ideas for the Perfect Night Out PLUS: >The Hasty Pudding Awards >Beanpot Hockey >Forbidden Broadway:Broadway: SVU at the BCA www.panoramamagazine.com I Love You... contents COVER STORY 16 Romantic Boston Eight great ideas for the perfect night out FEATURE 20 Forbidden Fruit Gerard Alessandrini returns home with his hit parody, Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit DEPARTMENTS 6 around the hub 6 news & notes 10 on exhibit 11 nightlife 12 style 13 kids corner 14 on stage 15 dining 23 the hub directory 24 current events 31 clubs & bars 33 museums & galleries 38 maps 43 sightseeing 48 freedom trail 50 shopping 54 mind & body on the cover: 55 restaurants Miss Massachusetts, 68 NEIGHBORHOODS USA 2005 Cristina NardozziNardozzi of Maggie 78 5 questions with… Inc.Inc. showsshows ofofff her LUX BOND & GREEN Local chef PETER BALLARIN hometown affection. Photo: JEWELRY WATCHES GIFTS • SINCE 1898 Rebecca Bousquet THE ROSE OF MASSACHUSETTS: Hair and Make-up: Cover girl Cristina Nardozzi introduces Rachael Berkowitz 416 BOYLSTON STREET BOSTON 617.266.4747 readers to our sure-fire suggestions for a Produced by 60 CENTRAL STREET WELLESLEY 781.235.9119 romantic night out. Refer to story, page 16. Heather Burke MOHEGAN SUN WEST HARTFORD GLASTONBURY HARTFORD PHOTO BY R EBECCA B OUSQUET ___ SOUTH WINDSOR GREENWICH WESTPORT 1-800-LBGREEN www.LBGreen.com FEBRUARY 13–26, 2006 3 The Official Guide to BOSTON www.panoramamagazine.com February 13–26, 2006 Volume 55 • Number 19 Jerome Rosenfeld • CHAIRMAN Tim Montgomery • PRESIDENT/PUBLISHER Christine Celli • EDITOR Scott Roberto • ART/PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Josh B. Wardrop • ASSOCIATE EDITOR Sharon Hudak Miller • ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR Heather S. Burke • PHOTO EDITOR Marketa Hulpachova • EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Della Huff, Rebecca Bousquet, Derek Kouyoumjian, Joseph Oliviera • CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Mary Finer, Alex Harris, Jinnie Lee, LaTanya McQueen, Kamie Richard • EDITORIAL INTERNS Jacolyn Ann Firestone • VICE PRESIDENT, ADVERTISING Rita A. Fucillo • DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS Tyler Montgomery • ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Angela Belanger • SALES/MARKETING INTERN Peter Ng • INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MANAGER Melissa J. O’Reilly • BUSINESS MANAGER George Ghareeb • TECHNICAL CONSULTANT If you’re not having a good time, PANORAMA is published bi-weekly by Jerome Press Publications Inc. Editorial and advertising offices at 332 Congress Street, Boston, MA 02210. Telephone (617) 423- 3400. Printed in the U.S.A. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced with- out written permission of the publisher. PANORAMA is a member of the Massachusetts Lodging Association, The Back Bay Association, The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, The Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau, Cambridge Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Boston Concierge Association, the Harvard Square check your pulse. Business Association, the Newbury Street League and the Downtown Crossing Association. PANORAMA is audited by BPA Worldwide, an 40 fabulous years independent audit bureau recognized by the 0 American Association of Advertising Agencies. LATE NIGHT BISTRO MENU,, LIVE JAZZ NIGHTLY 617.536.1775 a magazine affiliate 800 Boylston Street, Prudential Center, Boston ___ ___ 4 PANORAMA FEBRUARY 13–26, 2006 5 AT, DRINK EAND BE MERRY calendar of events aroundthehubby Josh B. Wardrop TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, news&notes The human body has very little ambition in winter- FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17 & time—essentially, instinct is SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18 telling it to do little more The laughs don’t stop when “master than chill out, eat a lot and of the throwaway line” Wendy drink a lot. Since there’s Liebman, a comedian featured on “The really no point in defying Tonight Show,” “The Late Show with the forces of nature, we David Letterman,” Comedy Central and therefore recommend taking HBO, performs at the Comedy part in the WGBH Wine & Connection. Refer to listing, page 24. Food Weekend, hosted by the Seaport Hotel. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21– FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24 Bring the kids along to the Wheelock Family Theatre and let the riches-to-rags story of Sara Crewe: A Little Princess prove that dreams can definitely come true. Refer to listing, page 27. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22 & THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23 W.C. Handy Award-winning pianist/ vocalist Marcia Ball brings her Pudding on a Show for Gere and Berry brand of New Orleans-influenced blues to Scullers this week, with inseltown is aflutter each winter as they await news of who will be awarded the enter- shows both nights at 8 and 10 p.m. Ttainment industry’s highest honors. Oscars and Golden Globes? Heck no—we’re talking Refer to listing, page 28. about the Hasty Pudding Theatricals’ annual Man and Woman of the Year Awards! Since 1951 (1963 for the menfolk), Hollywood’s top performers have been selected by the THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23– Harvard University theatrical club for recognition of their contributions to entertainment. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25 Recent winners such as Catherine Zeta-Jones (pictured above), Bruce Willis, Tim Robbins, Sponsored by Boston’s Conductor James Levine and the Boston Meg Ryan and countless others have been treated to a parade through the streets of local public television Symphony Orchestra are joined by Cambridge, followed by an evening roast in which the lucky winner is serenaded by station, the 17th annual guests Lorraine Hunt Lieberson and men in drag and affectionately mocked before receiving their Pudding Pot award. weekend consists of four Karita Mattila for a performance of This year, Halle Berry (Monster’s Ball, Catwoman) gets the Hasty Pudding treatment on days of festive wine tastings, Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder, a ground- February 16 at 3:15 p.m. at the Agassiz Theater, 14 Mason St., Cambridge, while Richard specialty dinners, culinary breaking composition that bridges the Gere (Chicago, An Officer and A Gentlemen) receives his recognition February 24, at classes and other events late Romantic and the modern eras of 8:10 p.m., at the Zero Arrow Street Theater. Gere’s roast will be immediately followed by celebrating some of the classical music. Refer to listing, page 24. the opening night performance of the Pudding’s 158th production, Some Like It Yacht. world’s finest wines. Best of A limited number of tickets are available to the public for the two events ($80 for all, proceeds from events like SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25 the Berry roast and show; $100 for the Gere roast and performance of Yacht) by calling the February 16 Vintner Groundbreaking stand-up comic and 617-495-5205, or visiting www.hastypudding.org. Dinner, February 18 Rare social commentator George Carlin and Fine Wine Auction and takes the stage at the Wang Theatre news & notes 6 • on exhibit 10 • nightlife 11 • February 19 Jazz Brunch for a night of acerbic and intelligent comedy starting at 7:30 p.m. Refer to style 12 • kids corner 13 • on stage 14 • dining 15 benefit WGBH—therefore cont. on page 8 >> listing, page 24 ___ ___ ABOVE PHOTO BY J EFFREY D UNN 6 PANORAMA FEBRUARY 13–26, 2006 7 around the hub NEWS & NOTES << cont. funding more televi- The so-called “Running Brides” could be your from page 7 sion we can watch of the Brides,”which takes chance to find the dress as we stay inside place February 17 at you’ve always dreamed of and hibernate until spring. Filene’s Basement in Down- for a dream price. Refer to For a complete schedule town Crossing, features listing, page 28. of events, or to make reser- more than 2,500 designer PUCKS AND YUKS vations, call 617-300-3999 and famous name wedding or visit www.wgbh.org/ gowns (which typically Finally, future brides won’t wineandfood. retail from $900–9000), be the only people getting most of which are marked knocked around in the Hub RUNAWAY BRIDES down to $249 and $499. this week, as the 54th You’d have to be insane to As one might imagine, annual Beanpot Hockey get between a woman and a hundreds of future brides Tournament comes to an great bargain. Now, imagine are drawn to the event end on February 13. throwing in the anticipation every year, literally making Following the results of and determination of a a mad dash through the first-round matches, teams bride-to-be in search of the store’s doors when they from Harvard, perfect wedding dress and… open at 8 a.m. Northeastern, Boston well, it’s a miracle that the So, if there are wedding University and Boston annual winter Filene’s bells in your future, and College will meet up in Basement Bridal Gown Sale you’re not afraid to make either the consolation game doesn’t result in the same like Russell Crowe in at 5 p.m., or the champi- kind of casualties seen in Gladiator (or, for that mat- onship at 8 p.m., at the the opening minutes of ter, in his own everyday TDBanknorth Garden. Saving Private Ryan. life), the “Running of the Refer to listings, page 28. ___ 8 PANORAMA around the hub ON EXHIBIT by Scott Roberto around the hub NIGHTLIFE by Mary Finer In the Also On Just Hump Day Public Eye Campus Xanadu It Happenings AMERICA STARTS HERE: KATE , 2005 RUSTIC KITCHEN ETER 1815 Mass. Ave., Cambridge ERICSON AND MEL ZIEGLER P MIT List Visual Arts Center TMENT 617-354-7766 AR Through April 9 HIEF EP C D THE CACTUS CLUB n the mid- to late- IRE 939 Boylston St. • 617-236-0200 F I1980s, Mel Ziegler ISTRICT D and the late Kate , ho says there’s no VILLE TI Ericson were two O fun to be had on W W A OMER L of the driving , S Wednesdays? Rather than forces that helped AIR swooning over Sawyer and L re-define public art .