In the news

'The Revivalist'

Madison Park's own Gian-Carlo Scandiuzzi was the subject of a laudatory cover story in the Seattle Times' Pacific Northwest magazine two Sundays ago.  In it, writer Misha Berson gave credit to Scandiuzzi, ACT's general manager, for the revival of the once-shaky but now well-positioned theatre, which is housed the historic Eagles Auditorium building downtown.

Scandiuzzi, who has been at the helm of ACT for a little over three years, has not only provided vision, creativity and leadership to the 47-year-old theatre but has also lent his talents to helping other arts organization in Seattle cope with these challenging economic times. In addition, Carlo and his wife, Lalie, have proven to be generous patrons of many local arts groups.

Berson does get at least one fact glaringly wrong in her article, however.  Referring to the Scianduzzis' "comfortable but hardly palatial" home, she places the 27-year residents of Washington Park squarely in Madison Valley.  We, however, know better.

Here, by the way, is a recent clip from YouTube with Carlo up close and personal, talking about ACT:

The story behind the Madison Park Bears

The Sun Break, a local "online magazine of news and culture" this month noted the sad passing of sculptor Richard Beyer, who died in New York earlier this month at age 86. While many know that Beyer was responsible for the internationally famous "Waiting for the Interurban" in Fremont, far fewer of us may have been aware that he was also the sculptor of the the bears that grace Madison Park:

The Sun Break's article corrects this oversight (if oversight it is) with a lovely eulogy to Beyer's "witty, never boring" works, which can be found all around Seattle (if you know where to look).

Local patisseries make good

Madison Park's Belle Epicurean and Madison Valley's Ines Patisserie are each singled out for high praise in this month's edition of Seattle Magazine. In an article entitled, "Butter Me Up:  Seattle's Best Croissants," the magazine touts Belle Epicurean's entry as "an impossible-to-resist croissant that seduces in flavor and texture, and an exterior that lands in the middle: not too pale, not too dark."

Ines' "gorgeous" croissants, meanwhile, are described as having "an ideal softness inside, a deeply buttery flavor and a crust that’s neither pale nor too caramelized."

Cafe Parco is "warm and comforting"

That same issue of Seattle Magazine also has a favorable review of Madison Park's Cafe Parco, which reviewer Alison Austin Scheff calls charming, not trendy. She describes Chef/Owner Celinda Norton's cooking as "big-boned, rich and indulgent; the sort of Italian food many of us first fell in love with, not the spare, restrained Italian food we’ve come to adore in recent years."

[Upper photo by Benjamin Benschneider for the Seattle Times. Lower photo by "MvB" for The Sun Break.  Belle Epicurean is located at 3109 E. Madison St., Ines Patisserie is located at 2909 E. Madison St., and Cafe Parco is located at 1807 42nd Avenue E.]