webster u. | Three of the four concerts planned for the 15th annual Missouri Chamber Music (MOCM) Festival will be performed on the Webster U. campus, with the other to be staged in WashU’s Graham Chapel. The four concerts of the festival, titled The Spirit That Moves Us, take a look at the spirit behind inspiration—what sparks us to create, express ourselves and connect? Artists will share diverse programs relating to this theme. Works by Olivier Messiaen, Debussy and Joaquín Turina will take center stage, as well as the world premiere of “Hey Mr. Drummachine Man” by composer Eric Moe for drum set and piano. “Thinking of the many meanings we have for the word ‘spirit’ has made this year’s MOCM Festival programs interesting, energetic and deeply meaningful in a spiritual sense,” says Nina Ferrigno, festival director and pianist, who will perform Moe’s world premiere composition with Kevin Ritenauer on percussion. Music by Christopher Stark will also be featured that evening at Webster’s CMS Concert Hall for the “Get Up” program at 7:30 p.m. on June 9. “Bygone,” the second night of the festival, will begin at 7 p.m. on June 12 in Graham Chapel, featuring the music of French Impressionist composers Debussy and Ravel. The third and fourth concerts will both start at 7 p.m. at Winifred Moore Auditorium on the Webster U. campus, June 19 and June 20. Themed “Naturally,” the program on the 19th will feature compositions by Spanish composer Turina, Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho and trailblazing African American composer Florence Price, with Hugh Hinton on piano. The final concert, featuring Hinton and Ferrigno on piano and themed “Above,” will consist of compositions by Messiaen, a 20th century Frenchman deeply inspired by his Roman Catholic faith and nature, especially birdsong. Some of his performances were with fellow prisoners while in a German POW camp during World War II. May the spirit move you! For more information or tickets, visit mochambermusic.org.
hazelwood
The USAF awarded the $20 billion contract for the next generation stealth fighter jet to Boeing, our hometown airplane factory. The new fighter program has been numbered 47 to reflect that the contract was signed by Donald Trump, our 47th president. While it’s a pretty big deal for Trump, it’s even bigger for Boeing, considering the widely reported challenges faced by the company’s commercial aircraft, such as a door that disengaged in January 2024 from a 737 in mid-flight, depressurizing the cabin. Boeing was one of five companies competing for the project, a sixth-generation fighter designed to replace the F-22 Raptor. The F-47 will be able to operate alongside autonomous drones. This isn’t the first rodeo for the former McDonnell-Douglas, of course. Boeing was a key partner in the F-22, which was primarily designed and built by Lockheed Martin. The plane is expected to be delivered by the end of the decade, but the concept is subject to change as technology and wartime requirements inevitably advance. Expected to be one of the most ambitious and expensive in U.S. military history, the project is a much-needed shot in the arm not only for Boeing, but for our regional economic health. For the Lou, the contract is transformational. Boeing’s $1.8 billion expansion in North County includes new manufacturing facilities, creating thousands of high-paying jobs and firmly establishing our region as a critical hub for aerospace production. This investment is expected to have a generational impact on the metro economy, supporting families and businesses for decades. As someone once said, “To infinity and beyond.” Feels sort of like that for us.
clayton
It appears that the former Caleres headquarters complex at 5 Maryland Ave. in Clayton—what could have been a significant boost for Clayton School District—is instead going to be a very colorful and quite large feather in the cap of Opera Theatre of St. Louis. Standing in the way of the nonprofit’s ambitious dream is unraveling red tape, not simply demolition of existing buildings—it’s admirable that Opera Theatre doesn’t plan to build just an opera house to serve as its new venue. And a larger auditorium in Clayton would make sense, as in 2022 Centene Corp. pulled back its horns on expansion plans that had included an amphitheater in the eastern part of town near The Ritz. The new center would be available for other theater groups and musical performances. On the western edge of downtown Clayton, at more than six acres and positioned just a few blocks from I-170, the Caleres property is one of the most desirable pieces of real estate in the county. The school district’s initial plans were to create an ‘empowerment campus’ there, but it decided not to move forward, citing mixed community feedback and concerns about the impact on the city’s tax base. Since 1976, Opera Theatre has operated out of the Loretto-Hilton Center for the Performing Arts on the Webster U. campus, and many performers and patrons have expressed disappointment in the acoustics—and players have longed for a more spacious orchestra pit. As for the shoe company, the downsizing Caleres is relocating to two leased downtown office buildings: 8182 Maryland Ave. and 8235 Forsyth Blvd.
notable neighbors
chesterfield valley
OK, Boomer. Even you could probably get the Gen X comedy that Kelly Manno has been cooking up and dishing out since the pandemic. And for years before that, radio listeners who followed the Steve & DC Show on 106.5 FM The Arch would be familiar with her schtick. Manno made good trouble on the air. Many of our older readers might remember some of her ingeniously naughty practical jokes—two resonate with yours truly. No fan of Stan Kroenke, like thousands of St. Louisans, I wished much greater misfortune on the billionaire than the mere $571 million he had to cough up as settlement for his heinous relocation of our Super Bowl champion Rams to L.A. Little devil that she is, Manno had 25 pounds of real ram manure delivered to the City of Angels and deposited on the Kroenke’s front porch. “I have revenge issues,” she says. So don’t condescend her, either. She was none too pleased when someone from the Dr. Phil show wanted to speak to someone in authority with her wisecracking radio show. But she’s no lackey. So, they cooked up a scheme where Manno allegedly was part of a love triangle, whichttps://genxtakeover.comh made it to air. The hoax spurred a lawsuit from the reality show’s parent company that eventually was dropped. Call it a “Girl Power” play. “I’m not scared,” she says, smiling impishly. “I won’t back down from a rich white man.” She’s one of four Gen X comics to generate guaranteed guffaws at 5 p.m. June 1 at The Factory in Chesterfield Valley. Say when? “We all have bedtimes now,” Manno points out. The show will include a set from each, an improv session and even a singalong. In the ’80s and ’90s, nobody had qualms about drinking from the garden hose—and they didn’t buy bottled water by the SUV-load. And folks actually took pictures with a camera, had the film developed and prints made almost anywhere in an hour. Now we can’t slam our phones down to hang up on someone with loud satisfaction because we take photos with the same sensitive device, and in a matter of moments, images can go viral, like it or not. Manno really took off on social media while COVID-19 had many of us at a standstill. Making goofy TikTok videos was a great salve for cabin fever. She’s since monetized her material on that platform, plus Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Lockdown was a particular challenge for this extrovert, who “came out of the womb with a big personality” and went to high school in Granite City. She now lives in St. Charles with her three kids, has millions of followers across social media and runs Smelly Cat Rescue. She’s fostered more than 500 animals, one of whom was Piggy Smalls, a porker who roamed the house like a dog. A blind cat named Stevie Wonder, and a three-legged cat named Lt. Dan are now part of the family. For some bona fide hilarity with her three cohorts, just visit genxtakeover.com.
