December 3, 2023

Ross Boissoneau | Author


If You Only See One Film Next Week

July 21, 2018

The Traverse City Film Festival always brings a host of movies the general public knows virtually nothing about. So how to decide which ones to seek out? Which are good and which are really good?

We’re here to help. OK, some of the staff at the Film Fest are here to... Read More >>

Don’t Miss This

July 21, 2018

So you know you want to “do” the Traverse City Film Festival, but you’re a first-timer (gasp!) and/or you just aren’t sure what — among the many films and events happening simultaneously — you absolutely must experience.

Take it from the e... Read More >>

Come On, Get Happy (Hour) at Suttons Bay Wineries and Cidery

July 14, 2018

In the Suttons Bay area, they’re taking the concept of Happy Hour to a whole new level — the hilltop level. Three wineries — Willow Vineyards, Ciccone Vineyard and Winery, and Chateau de Leelanau — and Suttons Bay Ciders are working together to promote Hilltop Happ... Read More >>

Michigan’s Jeremy Kittel to Return to Manitou

July 14, 2018

Fresh off a performance at Blissfest, violinist and fiddler Jeremy Kittel is returning to one of his favorite places to play: the Manitou Music Festival. “I’m excited for both,” he said from the road, prior to this past weekend’s annual celebration of folk and root... Read More >>

Dine at Kewadin's Pine Hill ... Nursery?

July 14, 2018

There aren’t many restaurants where you can order a pizza, a glass of beer, and a forsythia bush. But that’s the thing at Pine Hill Nursery in Kewadin: What started as a nursery has morphed over the years into a gift shop, greenhouse, music venue, and yes, a restaurant. It off... Read More >>

Behold the Dragon Boats

July 7, 2018

According to the Chinese zodiac, we have to wait until 2024 for the next year of the dragon. But in Charlevoix, that year is already here: the Charlevoix Circle Of Arts will host the inaugural Charlevoix Dragon Boat Festival on Lake Charlevoix Aug. 4.

The concept of dragon bo... Read More >>

Rock Royalty to Play Benzie Barn

June 30, 2018

 

It’s about 150 miles from Detroit to Cleveland, but Billy Davis’s road was so circuitous it took decades to get from one to the other. Now the celebrated musician and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is adding another 250 miles to the journey, ending up ... Read More >>

The Bard’s the Thing

June 30, 2018

 

Of course people will show up for a free outdoor performance of plays by Shakespeare. Yes, in rural Benzie County. Who would doubt that?

Turns out the very people who put the play on. “We had no idea,” said founding member Jeff Christian. No idea what pe... Read More >>

Pyro Guy

June 30, 2018

Like so many youngsters, Bruce Tyree was fascinated by fireworks. Unlike most, however, he failed to outgrow his obsession. So he made the most of it. Today he’s surrounded by Roman candles, display shells, and barrage cakes on a daily basis as the head of the northern division of G... Read More >>

The Truth Behind the Cherries at the Nat'l Cherry Fest

June 30, 2018

The Traverse City National Cherry Festival celebrates the cherries grown here, in the cherry capital of the world, right? So why, every Fourth of July week, do you hear at least a few festival-goers snipe, “These aren’t Traverse City cherries! They ship ’em in &mdash... Read More >>

Best. Cherry Fest. Ever.

June 23, 2018

OK, sure, there’s fireworks, perfect for ooohs and ahhhhs. We know about the Blue Angels and the air show. There are concerts, parades, and don’t forget the Great American Duck Race. Or the Cherry Pie Eating Contest. Well, maybe forget the pie-eating contest, because you want ... Read More >>

Oh, Yes!

June 23, 2018

 

 

Most bands don’t get a recording contract. Most that do don’t make it big. Most groups that make it to the top don’t hang around for long.

Yes isn’t most groups. The band is celebrating 50 years of its progressive rock by takin... Read More >>

Sommelier Central

June 16, 2018

Police are here to serve and protect. It’s all about the law. Sommeliers are here to serve and educate. For them, it’s all about the wine.

The source of all knowledge, Wikipedia (ahem), calls a sommelier “a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, normally wo... Read More >>

 Tax Reform Means Breaks for Wine Industry — For a Few, and For a While At Least

June 16, 2018

 

Death and taxes, and tax breaks in the wine industry … maybe. That’s what we all have to look forward to, though the lattermost is not yet set in stone.

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act — aka the Trump tax cuts — is impacting virtually all are... Read More >>

The Latest on the Region's Wine Scene

June 16, 2018

So many wines, so little time. Each year brings new vintages, new styles, new tasting rooms and events, even new grapes. With some four dozen wineries scattered around the region, how do you keep up with what’s new and exciting?

For starters, the Old Mission Peninsula Wineri... Read More >>

Outdoor Summer Sounds Abound

June 9, 2018

Sure, you can spend the big bucks at concert venues across the region, from Interlochen to Bay View to the new Great Lakes Center for the Arts at Bay View. Who doesn’t want to see Yes, Blondie, or Pink Martini? Add the bars, clubs, casinos and festivals, and you’ve got tons of... Read More >>

Historic Resort. Humongous Concert Venue.

June 9, 2018

It’s a safe bet that when Lydia Morrison of Cincinnati built Fountain Point Resort in 1889, she had no intention of it becoming a concert venue. But fast-forward a century and a quarter, and the quaint, quiet resort on the south shore of Lake Leelanau not only offers cottages and a ... Read More >>

Get Inside the Great Lakes Center for the Arts

June 9, 2018

Coming soon, to a theatre near you: a theater near you. The Great Lakes Center for the Arts is readying for its opening act, a benefit gala coming July 7.

Patrons will have an opportunity to “Raise the Curtain” at a benefit for the new facility, as well as take i... Read More >>

Honey, We Bought a Preserve

June 9, 2018

Jim Lamond had a vision. And if it wasn’t the kind where you see God, maybe it could be said it was a vision where he and others saw God’s handiwork, in the form of an 80-acre parcel of land, home to eagles, foxes, deer, and other flora and fauna. The land was destined for dev... Read More >>

The Kindness Kids Club

June 9, 2018

“Be kind to your parents, though they don't deserve it. Remember they’re grown-ups, a difficult stage of life."

When Harold Rome wrote that song in 1954, he probably didn’t have the vagaries of 21st-century life in mind. But as he said later in the song,... Read More >>