The Color Purple was an excellent selection to kick off The Black Rep 50th year season. The cast…read moredid an awesome job. The musicians were great. The choreography was excellent. The performers were amazing. They sang and harmonize well together. Generally in not a fan of Musicals. But I've enjoyed every production that I've seen by the Black Rep. The 1sr one was in the earth 80s.

First experience at the Edison Theater for a Black Rep performance. Happily surprised at the size…read moreof this auditorium. Seating comfortable, semi-circle around the stage with center, right and left choices. Ticket price included free parking in the garage located about a block from theater entrance. Enjoyed a funny, well performed play. Small concession stand. Enjoyed the show and setting on campus.

I like public art, and I like find a different public art. We came across the steamboat murals. We…read moreare walking around in St. Louis. St. Louis has all kinds of different public are displays and this is a neat one.

The art museum is such a beautiful collection of ancient sculptures and artwork. It really lets you…read moresee what the different times were like and understand how talented the human race is at creation. We went during the Ancient Rome exhibition and it was breathtaking to see the size of the sculptures and learn about the families, royalty vs their servants, what type of armor and jewelry they would wear. Alongside the pieces of art that are normally there, I love the museum and think everyone in STL should visit.

Excellent collection for a small city. The museum is not too large but it has a good…read morerepresentative collection of European, American and ancient art. I was happy to find three Bierstadts. Impressionist room is excellent. Not a huge museum but definitely worth visiting!

Clayton tends to be "upscale" and not super welcoming to those who are "outsiders". Go somewhere…read moremore fun like the Tower Grove farmers market!

Love Taste of Clayton! I've attended for 30 years! I love the various food and people I encounter!…read moreAlways top shelf and very diverse.

This piece by local artist Ruth Keller Schweiss is in the center of a (drained) fountain at the…read moremiddle of a traffic circle next to several high rise office buildings and hotels. I walked past it each morning as it stands between where I was staying and my office this week. There is some video online of the fountain with water and it's very lovely. The sculpture depicts six slender ballerinas posed in "grant battement," a classical ballet position meaning "great brush off the floor." They are bronze and have the usual green tint that would be expected. They were installed in 1990, dedicated to Dance Saint Louis and are on loan to the art council. If you're nearby, cut through the fountain area and take some time to appreciate the art. [Review 19974 overall - 256 in Missouri - 948 of 2023.]

Start with the good. Front desk staff very good and…read moreprofessional. Valet was also professional. The room was average, nothing special but also no complaints. This is where it gets bad. Went to the rooftop bar/restaurant. First impression, hostess leaning over the hostess desk on her phone, look her a full minute to look up and acknowledge guests. We were not the only guests. Reasonably busy nothing crazy. But the attitude and demeanor of every single employee was beyond off putting. Every single employee acting as if it was a guests privilege that they were even waiting on them is crazy work for people who work for tips. Everyone seemed so robotic, like I said very off putting. The food was good, the cocktails were all spins on classic cocktails and honestly pretty gross. All four of us each got a different one, the only one that any of is liked was the blueberry mojito. The rest that we tried just seemed off and all had kind of bitter after tastes to them. The next night we met down at the lobby bar, which is an absolute ghost town. Honestly who wants to gets cocktails were they just had breakfast buffet that morning. Zero atmosphere. The bartender was super friendly though which was a 180 degree difference from the upstairs. She was very personable, funny, and made great recommendations. Her recommendation for where to go for dinner was spectacular, was a small locally owned restaurant that had such a great cozy local feel and food was superb. Concierge level service from her.

I did not check in to a room at AC Hotel, I just stopped by and enjoyed a cocktail in their lobby…read morebar. Actually, I arrived early for a private event up on the 11th floor at High Bar. Since I arrived so early, I had time to kill and I thought sipping a cocktail was a good way to pass time. The lobby bar, didn't have a name, it was just to right as I entered the main entrance. It's small in size, so you can kind of say it was intimate. I took a seat at the bar, but they did have several tables for groups to gather and drink. I was pleased to see that under the bar, they had hooks. I'm a big advocate for hooks being under bars. They're great for light coats and for ladies to securely store their purse. After looking over the cocktail menu, I went with a Manhattan. Wow, the young lady working as bartender, knew her craft and made me an outstanding cocktail. I watched her make it and her skills were masterful. I prefer my Manhattans up and with a dark cherry. You give me a Maraschino cherry, you lose a star in any rating. Good Cocktail, Good Service, Good Value and Relaxing Atmosphere. I'll be glad to stop by again, when I'm in Clayton.

Located in Shaw Park near the North Shelter, this large sculpture is a little trippy. It is the…read morework of South-African born and English-educated artist Steven Gregory. The sculpture depicts a stylized elephant sits astride a small blue tricycle, and boasts a head resembling the opening of a saxophone. Unveiled in 2015, it is a lot strange and a lot whimsical. And at 16 feet tall and weighing 17 thousand pounds, you can't miss it. I can not decide if I like or if I hate it. It's art and there you go. When you're in Shaw Park, stop by and check it out. Let me know what you think of it. [Review 1748 of 2024 - 384 in Missouri - 22771 overall]

We took advantage of the free tours being offered at the Campbell house museum this weekend and it…read morewas a great time. The fact that so much of the original furniture, art, and accessories remain in top condition if wild after all these years. Our tour guide was fantastic and we really enjoyed ourselves. A must-do if you are at all interested in STL history

Went on the architectural tour with a fantastic docent. So much history and ways of exploring this…read moretreasure . Got sidetracked from original purpose for the tour by many people in the tour asking interesting questions. There are many tour themes offered.

The Friedrich Ludwig Jahn Monument is located in Forest Park on a trail that's tucked between Art…read moreHill and the World's Fair Pavilion. It's probably one of the least visited places in the park and really isn't worth trying to find unless you're just wandering around the park. I'd never heard of the guy, but I often ride my bike past this monument and had always wondered what it was for. Finally, I stopped one day and took some photos so I could research it later. So it turns out that Friedrich lived from 1778 to 1852. He was from Germany and was a gymnastics educator. Apparently, he is known as the "father of gymnastics", and created early versions of the balance beam, parallel bars and horizontal bars. It also sounds like this guy has some controversy over his political views. It said that in 1810, as a nationalist, he advocated Germany's maintaining of its own language and culture against foreign influence. About 100 years later in 1941, Peter Viereck wrote a book about the "Roots of the Nazi Mind" and called Friedrich "the spiritual founder of Nazism". However others point out that his calls for nationalism were during a different time when Germany was occupied by foreign armies under Napoleon. I can't find any connection between St. Louis and Friedrich Ludwig Jahn. It looks like the memorial was dedicated by the American Turners which is an organization that "encouraging people of all ages to be mentally and physically active". This group has German roots and was perhaps popular with St. Louis' large immigrant population. The monument was dedicated in 1913 and rededicated in 1972. Ok, so I've spent way too much time on this review! Whatever the history of this guy, I like the area around the monument and the way it's kind of hidden on the side of a hill overlooking the lazy river. It's a good area to relax, watch the paddle boats putter by, and perhaps take in a little bit of history.