Uwishunu.com

Meet Philly-bred Kevin Bacon in person at this one-night-only special Kimmel Center event. (Photo courtesy Kevin Bacon)

Philadelphia-born actor Kevin Bacon will make an appearance in Philadelphia for the Kimmel Center’s 10th Anniversary special event,”Clips and Conversation with Kevin Bacon,” Wednesday, February 15, 7:30-9 p.m. in the Perelman Theater.

Noted Philly film critic Carrie Rickey will host the event, reflecting on Bacon’s career with a montage of movie clips and a candid discussion with the actor himself.

The evening is a sure to be a thrill, particularly for students who wish to pursue a career in acting or those who are already doing so, thanks to discussion and insight on the industry.

Bacon is actually the official celebrity spokesperson for the Kimmel Center’s 10th Anniversary Season, which pays homage to Philadelphia legends who have contributed to the city’s performing arts landscape.

A little Bacon background: in 1984 he became a household name with his starring role in Footloose. Other well-known film credits include Animal House, Apollo 13, Mystic River, A Few Good Men, Frost/Nixon and X Men.

Space is very limited. Tickets are just $20 for general seating and $5 for high school, college, and graduate students with a valid student I.D. They can be purchased at the Kimmel Center Box Office, by phone at (215) 893-1999 or online.

Kevin Bacon at the Kimmel Center
When: Wednesday, February 15, 7:30-9 p.m.
Where: Broad and Spruce Streets
Cost: $20 for general seating and $5 for high school, college, and graduate students
More info: www.tickets.kimmelcenter.org

Enjoy an exclusive evening of Route 6 Chef DiRienzo's delicious cuisine prepared with crisp craft beer.
(Photo courtesy Route 6)

Stephen Starr’s Route 6 is hosting a one-night-only special beer dinner featuring the New Hampshire-based nano-brewery White Birch Brewing, Wednesday, March 7, the first event of its kind at the recently opened restaurant.

The four-course menu prepared by acclaimed Chef Anthony DiRienzo will feature plates like Smoked Bluefish Dip and Smoked Cod and Mussel Cassoulet, paired with craft brews from White Birch, including Route 6’s own proprietary blended ESB Ale.

The dinner is $50 per person.

Seats are very limited; reserve your spot by calling the restaurant at (215) 391-4600.

Check out the full menu, below.

Route 6 and White Birch Brewing Beer Dinner
When: Wednesday, March 7, 6-8 p.m.
Where: 600 N. Broad Street
Cost: $50
More info: www.route6restaurant.com

(more…)

Take a trip to the sunny Amalfi Coast with Positano's popular Winter Escape menu. (Photo courtesy Positano Coast)

Back starting this week by popular demand, Positano Coast is reprising its well-received $55 five-course tasting menu for two.

Available Sunday through Thursday (with the singular exception of February 14), this scrumptious “winter escape” menu combines highlights from land and sea.

Included in this delectable deal are dishes such as salmon carpaccio with fennel and dill aioli, braised beef short ribs over rosemary potatoes, sea urchin pasta with black squid ink pasta, sea urchin, crabmeat and a dessert sampler.

A wine pairing is also available for an extra $20 per guest. Big bonus: Sundays and Mondays are BYOB!

Valet parking is available. For more information or to make reservations, call (215) 238.0499.

“Winter Escape” Five-Course Menu at Positano Coast
When: Sundays through Thursdays
Where: 212 Walnut Street, 2nd Floor
Cost: $55
More info: www.positanocoast.net

Act II Playhouse in Ambler presents the Philadelphia-area premiere of Broadway drama Time Stands Still, on stage February 14-March 11.

A co-production with Delaware Theatre Company, Time Stands Still tells the story of Sarah and James, a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent trying to find happiness in a world gone crazy (sound familiar?).

The New York Times says the play “crackles with bright wit and intelligence.”

Want to see for yourself? Get tickets online.

Writer Donald Margulies is the Pulitzer-Prize winning author of Dinner with Friends, Collected Stories, Sight Unseen and many other plays.

Time Stands Still at Act II Playhouse
When: February 14-March 11
Where: 56 E. Butler Avenue, Ambler
Cost: Tickets range from $27-$33 for Friday evenings; discounts are available for students, seniors and groups
More info: www.act2.org

February is a month of firsts for Irish theater company Inis Nua.

They launch their first production of the season, stage their first play by the Tambor Award-winning Irish playwright Elaine Murphy, welcome local director Kathryn MacMillan to the Inis Nua family and hold their official opening at First Baptist Church in Center City.

Want to be a part of all those firsts? Nab a ticket to Little Gem, a Philadelphia premiere on stage February 7-26.

It’s a look into one transitional year in the lives of three generations of a Dublin family. Daughter Amber is taking a break from binge-drinking with the girls, mother Lorraine is testing the waters of love on the north side of 40, and Granny Kay is watching her dear man slip away.

Artistic Director Tom Reing calls the show “simply one of the best plays I’ve seen out of Ireland in the last ten years.”

Get tickets online.

Inis Nua’s Little Gem
When: February 7-26
Where: First Baptist Church, 1636 Sansom Street
Cost: $25
More info: www.inisnuatheatre.org

Mega-Bad Movie Night returns to the Academy of Natural Sciences this Thursday, February 9 at 6:30 p.m.

A popular regularly-recurring program in which absurdly awful movies are presented party-style, Mega-Bad Movie Night is also a great time to check out the academy’s exhibits after-hours.

This week’s edition features a screening of The Lost World: Jurassic Park. As always, the academy’s experts will be onstage to comment on the many scientific absurdities of the film.

Grab some snacks and a beer, and check out the many cool things on display at the academy. They’ll unveil some amazing fossils from their Paleontology Collection in honor of the event.

In addition, The Berserker Residents, the “mighty warriors of comedy,” will perform “Jurassic Park the Experimental Movement Puppet Exploration” prior to the show.

Register online.

Then be sure to check out the nearby Franklin Institute’s Giant Mysterious Dinosaurs exhibition, curated by none other than the world’s leading dinosaur collector and popularizer, Philadelphia-bred Don Lessem, advisor to the movie Jurassic Park.

Mega-Bad Movie Night at the Academy of Natural Sciences
When: Thursday, February 9, 6:30 p.m.
Where: 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway
Cost: $15
More info: www.ansp.org

The always-impressive Arden Theatre has a truly sensational play in production now on the upstairs Arcadia Stage.

Titled Clybourne Park, the piece, a 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Drama winner, leases characters and setting from the 1959 classic A Raisin in the Sun.

The play deals with important issues of gentrification, particularly poignant in Philadelphia’s urban setting. It takes you through the story of a house, a neighborhood and the people who have come and gone over five decades’ time.

Get tickets online.

Clybourne Park at the Arden Theatre
When: Now through March 25
Where: 40 N. 2nd Street
Cost: Tickets start at $29
More info: www.ardentheatre.org

Chef Brad Spence is dishing up an all-pig dinner at Amis on Wednesday. (Photo courtesy Amis)

Amis Trattoria, the Washington Square West Vetri Restaurant Family eatery, is hosting a four-course whole suckling pig dinner Wednesday night, February 8.

Chef Brad Spence is preparing the meal, just $65 with an additional, optional $35 wine pairing. It will be served at the Chef’s Counter for an extra-special evening.

Feast on Amis’ self-proclaimed “favorite animal,” from trotter to tail. Chef Brad Spence will be dishing up everything from porky borlotti bean stew to pici pasta with pigs head ragu & kale.

Latest word is that there are still a few seats left, so make a quick call and reserve your spot: (215) 732-2647.

Four-Course Whole Suckling Pig Dinner at Amis
When: Wednesday, February 8
Where: 412 S. 13th Street
Cost: $65, optional $35 wine pairing
More info: www.amisphilly.com

Leave it to the experts to instruct you on how to pair hand-craft chocolates made at Shane's with delicious wine, selected from an unparalleled selection at Ristorante Panorama. (Photo courtesy Shane's)

Wine and chocolate.

Individually they’re two of the most delicious and decadent delights one can enjoy. But pair them together and the flavors uniquely enhance one another, creating a taste so exceptional that it practically feels illegal on the tongue.

Fortunately, it’s perfectly legal to indulge in this luscious combination. So the experts from Ristorante Panorama and Shane’s Confectionery want to make sure you know how to pair them correctly.

On Wednesday, February 8, from 6-8 p.m., join sommelier William Eccleston of Ristorante Panorama and Eric Berley of the newly-remodeled Shane’s Confectionery for an evening of tasting, trying, sipping and sampling of a variety of superior wines and ports, all the while becoming enlightened on how to mix and match them with a rich array of dark and light chocolates from around the world.

Tickets to this appetizing and instructive event (learn how to impress your date on Valentine’s Day!) can be purchased in advance online for $25 or $35 at the door.

Ristorante Panorama and Shane’s Confectionery Wine and Chocolate Pairing
When: Wednesday, February 8, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Where: Ristorante Panorama, 14 N. Front Street
Cost: $25 in advance, $35 at the door
More info: www.localwineevents.com

Still don’t have your Valentine’s Day plans squared away?

Top of the Tower, located on the 51st floor of Three Logan Square, celebrates Valentine’s Day a little early with dinner, dancing, panoramic views and cabaret entertainment on Saturday, February 11.

Whether you’re single or attached, enjoy bites to eat from various dinner stations, a full bar pouring all drinks under $10 and a love tunes showcase from Eddie Bruce and the Tom Adams Trio.

Doors open at 6 p.m., show starts at 8 p.m. with dancing to follow.

Tickets can be purchased online.

Top of the Tower: Valentine’s Day
Where: Three Logan Square, 51st floor, 1717 Arch Street
When: Saturday, February 11, 6 p.m.
Cost: $90 per person
More info: www.topofthetower.com