dir. Michelangelo Antonioni, Italy, 1950, digital, b/w, Italian w/ English subtitles

Story of a Love Affair (1950) is the legendary Michelangelo Antonioni’s debut feature, a powerful statement on the delusions and violence sparked by a passionate love. This deeply tragic romance already exhibits the astonishing formal control and penetrating insights into the human condition that would later make him famous in films like Il Grido, L’Avventura and Blow-Up.

A wealthy industrialist becomes curious about his trophy wife Paola’s (Lucia Bosé) past, and hires a private investigator. The detective discovers that she had fallen desperately in love with the handsome Guido (Massimo Girotti) as a young girl, and may have participated in a crime to win his hand. After years apart, Paola and Guido reunite to deflect the investigation, and rekindle their attraction in the process. As events spiral out of their control, a murder may blaze their only path to freedom.

One of the great first features in movie history, Story of a Love Affair effortlessly weaves lust, class and the repercussions of violence into a crime movie melodrama you will not soon forget.

Tickets: http://ihousephilly.org/calendar/cronaca-di-un-amore-story-of-a-love-affair

Representatives from the City of Philadelphia, SEPTA, the University City District – West Philly Skills Initiative, USciences, Verizon, PeopleShare and more will present full-time, part-time and seasonal job openings at an upcoming Community Job Fair, which will take place on Saturday, May 21, at University of the Sciences.

Candidates of all ages and experience levels are welcome to attend the event, which is free and open to the public.

The following career services workshops will also be held during the morning and afternoon:

• Interview skills
• Resume writing
• Job searching and sourcing
• Applying online

The job fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at McNeil Science and Technology Center at 45th St. and Woodland Ave. (No. 20 on the campus map).

For more information, visit: usciences.edu/jobfair

University of the Sciences Invites You to a Community Job Fair

Saturday, May 21, 2016
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

University of the Sciences
McNeil Science and Technology Center
45th Street at Woodland Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19104

http://www.usciences.edu/directions
(No. 20 on the campus map)

– No cost to attend
– Candidates of all ages and experience levels are welcome
– Vendors and job openings from USciences, vendors, partners, and companies in the community
– Companies looking for full-time, part-time, and seasonal job openings

Confirmed Job Vendors: Canteen | City of Philadelphia | PeopleShare | SEPTA | Sodexo | University City District – West Philly Skills Initiative | USciences | Verizon

Onsite Career Services Workshops: Career service workshop sessions will take place during the morning and afternoon:

– Interview skills
– Resume writing
– Job searching and sourcing
– Applying online

Questions? Please contact David Forde, Director of Community and Government Relations, at 215-596-8719 or d.forde@usciences.edu.

A lot of cool events are happening in the area this weekend, including Second Fridays on Lancaster Avenue, Spruce Hill May Fair, Bartram’s Garden Spring Plant Sale & Mother’s Day festivities, UC Arts League’s Benefit Auction & Cocktail Party and more. Also, a reminder that the opening night for Curio Theatre’s farcical comedy Noises Off is this Friday. More details are below. For more upcoming events, please visit our Events Calendar. Happy Mother’s Day to all West Philly moms!

Friday, May 8

Carr Garden Groundbreaking Ceremony at Bartram’s Garden, 54th and Lindbergh

The groundbreaking for the Carr Garden restoration starts at 3:30 p.m. This free event marks the beginning of an exciting landscape renovation project on the western façade of the John Bartram House, recreating the Ann Bartram Carr and her husband Robert’s exotic plantings of the early 19th-century. Registration for the event is here.

“Arts in the Park” at Malcolm X. Memorial Park, 52nd and Pine

4 – 5:30 p.m.: Make Art Now!: Help create a community painting and sidewalk chalk art
5:30 – 7 p.m.: Performances by West Philadelphia middle and high school students (music, dance, spoken word, monologues)

Second Fridays on Lancaster Ave

Second Fridays kicks off at 5 p.m. with Live Music at the triangle lot at 42nd and Lancaster, featuring Toni Washington and PECCDC Brochure Release Party. Other events this Friday include: Neighborhood Time Exchange Open House (6-8 p.m., 4017 Lancaster Ave), Inner Journey Jazz at the CEC ($15) (7-9 p.m., 3500 Lancaster Ave); Open Mic Night at Reed’s Coffee (7 p.m. to whenever, 3802 Lancaster Ave), Free Screening of “Annie” (2014) (6:30 p.m., PEC, 325 N. 39th St); Reelblack Inc. presents “Closed Doors; The Integration of Baseball” ($5) (7 p.m., United Bank building, 3750 Lancaster Ave); Art on the Avenue presents “Full Circle: The East African Connection” – Paintings by Kenyan Artists and Emil Baumann (5:30 – 9 p.m., 3808 Lancaster Ave); Indego Bike Share Learning Session (6 – 8 p.m., 3750 Lancaster Ave, in the parking lot of the United Bank Building). More information is available on the Second Fridays on Lancaster Ave Facebook page.

“Noises Off” Opening Night at Curio Theatre, 48th and Baltimore

Curio Theatre Company wants folks to dress up in the 80’s style for the opening night of their new show, farcical comedy “Noises Off.” And those who do have a chance to win two passes for next season. The show starts at 8 p.m. and tickets ($15-$25) are available here.

Saturday, May 9

Spruce Hill May Fair at Clark Park, 43rd and Chester

The annual Spruce Hill May Fair will be held for the 57th time with some new activities added for children this year. This Saturday kids can enjoy pony rides and a petting zoo (both 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.) in addition to the bounce tent and 40-foot-long obstacle course. The fair, which will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. rain or shine, will also include a raffle with great prizes from neighborhood businesses (read more about them here), music performances, book and plant sales, and dozens of local vendors and food trucks. Please visit the Spruce Hill Community Association’s website for more information. If you would like to volunteer at the event please email Craig Santoro at craigsantoro@gmail.com

Spring Plant Sale at Bartram’s Garden

Bartram’s Garden Spring Plant will take place on Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Expert horticulturists will be on hand on both days for consultations and advice. The following events are scheduled for Saturday: Garden Bird Walk (7:30 a.m.) and Hidden History & Garden Tours (12 – 3 p.m.). Tickets are available at the Welcome Center. Click here for more information.  Continue Reading

University of Pennsylvania (Source: Wikipedia)

Is the University of Pennsylvania paying its fair share?

It’s a question worth asking and it’s at the heart of the upcoming Philadelphia Area Jobs with Justice (JWJ) community forum, taking place Sat. May 31 at Monumental Baptist Church (4948 Locust Street). The forum, which begins at 3 p.m., will discuss Penn’s contributions (and lack thereof) to Philadelphia, as well as a campaign for the university to make PILOT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes) contributions—voluntary payments made to the city by nonprofit hospitals and universities, which are tax-exempt entities, that benefit city schools and services.

According to the labor and social justice coalition, while the rest of Philadelphia is grappling with employment insecurity, slashes to the city budget, cutbacks in public services, and a long-standing education crisis, Penn continues to prosper on and around its 994-acre campus. The JWJ points out, the Ivy League’s total endowment is valued at $7.74 billion as of the 2013 fiscal year, and its president, Amy Gutmann, makes over $2 million a year as of 2011—over $600,000 more than 2010—ranking her as one of the highest-paid university presidents in the country. The university’s total budget for the 2014 fiscal year, though, is $6.6 billion, which consists of a $3.634 billion payroll budget including benefits.

And none of that money is earmarked for PILOT contributions—at least, not since 2000. In 1995, the city and Penn struck a five-year agreement during  which the university would voluntarily pay $1.93 million a year to the city as part of PILOT, but the program expired, according to the Daily Pennsylvanian. None of Philadelphia’s 2011 PILOT money came from Penn, Drexel University nor Temple University. Instead, reported Generocity, the biggest contributor was a 40-acre retirement community in Andorra called Cathedral Village that donated $272,250 of the $383,650 the city received in that year.

In response to Penn’s lack of PILOT contributions, Gutmann told DP in 2012: “We are very committed to having a big economic impact on the city. We’ve been cited as a model around this country of a university that has the most positive impact on its neighborhood and city.”

But JWJ clearly sees it differently.

“As you probably guessed, [‘Is U. Penn paying its fair share?’] is a bit of a leading question. [O]f course U. Penn isn’t paying its fair share,” the organization wrote on the event’s page. “It’s one of only two Ivies that refuse to make PILOT contributions … Well, we think it’s time to pay up.”

Registration is required for the forum. To register, click here. For more information, email director@phillyjwj.org.

–Annamarya Scaccia

As always, we’re sharing information on the upcoming Kindergarten open houses at assorted West Philly schools. The list has been compiled by the West Philly Coalition for Neighborhood Schools.

A. D. Harrington School
5300-34 Baltimore Ave., 19143
(215) 471 – 2914
www.philasd.org/schools/harrington
Open House: Call for date and time

Alain Locke School
4550 Haverford Ave., 19139
(215) 823 – 8202
http://webgui.phila.k12.pa.us/schools/l/locke
Open House: Tuesday, May 13. Starts at 9:30 a.m.

B. B. Comegys School
5100 Greenway Ave., 19143
(215) 727 – 2162
Open House: Call for date and time

Henry C. Lea School
4700 Locust St., 19139
(215) 471 – 2915
http://webgui.phila.k12.pa.us/schools/l/lea
Open House: Thursday, May 15, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.

Martha Washington Academics
766 N. 44th St., 19104
(215) 823 – 8203
www.philasd.org/schools/marthawashington
Open House: Tuesday, May 13. Starts at 4:00 p.m.

Morton McMichael School
3543 Fairmount Ave., 19104
(215) 823-8272
http://webgui.phila.k12.pa.us/schools/m/mcmichael
Open House: Call for date and time

Penn Alexander School
4209 Spruce St., 19104
(215) 823 – 5465
www.philasd.org/schools/pennalexander
Open House: Tuesday, May 13, 9:30-10:30 a.m.

Samuel B. Huey School
5200 Pine St., 19143
(215) 471 – 2901
Open House: Tuesday, May 13, 9:30-10:15 a.m.

Samuel Powel School
301 N. 36th St., 19104
(215) 823 – 8201
www.philasd.org/schools/powel
Open House: Friday, May 16, 8:30-9:30 a.m.