(photo credit: David Allen for Opera San Jose) Falstaff Join us for the final opera of our 2025-26 Season... and Christopher Hahn's final opera as General Director of Pittsburgh Opera ! Verdi's Falstaff comes to Benedum Center from April 28th through May 3rd . Beloved buffoon Sir John Falstaff has fallen on hard times. But being a ladies’ man (or so he’d like to think), he drunkenly schemes to cash in on his wit and charm by wooing the wealthy wives of Windsor, Alice Ford and Meg Page. However, when these women uncover that he has sent them both identical love letters, they hatch a plan of their own to teach Falstaff a lesson he won’t soon forget! The music matches the merriment and mischief of this madcap romp. See why Verdi’s buoyant comedy, based on Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor , is considered one of the best comedic operas of all time! FREE childcare is available at our Sunday matinee performance ! Or, l...
N ew England Clam Chowder at Ladles in Springdale Credit all Photos to Bill Rockwell On Tuesday after a visit to the Rachel Carson Homestead, we looked around for a place to dine and discovered Ladles, an Italian restaurant in Springdale with non-Italian selections as well. The Bar The interior of the restaurant that got its name from the time when it served a wide array of soups, plus sandwiches, has a country vibe that's cozy, charming, comfortable and super clean. On entry we found a cocktail and wine bar along one wall with a dessert cake cart along the opposite wall. The Home Made Cake Display I really liked the take home display case near the pay station at the end of the bar. It had a line up of nut rolls and pizzelles, house made balsamic vinaigrettes, home made pastas and bay leaves imported from Italy. The Piggy Boli Food we sampled included a New England clam chowder with noodles(a first time addition for me), a cheeseburger to die for and a piggy boli, a s...