Kennywood pricing tough on seniors

It is spring, and spring means Kennywood.

The park is one of our greatest assets in the area, and it has given all of us many great memories and joys over its 100 years.

Having said this, I need to express my displeasure for its changes in pricing last year.

It's great for the young children and the young adults who can come and ride all day and use the $28.95 Fun Day Pass or the discounted pricing from the local business people. However, many seniors, such as myself (70), can't ride but love to bring their grandchildren to the park. It is also uplifting to walk the park and enjoy a nice meal.

The ad says, "What kind of rider are you?" Great advertising, but they left out one segment of the community that has been a strong supporter of Kennywood throughout the years: seniors and those parents who do not or cannot ride.

How about the seniors and the children 3 to 8? This is not a bargain, nor is the reduced price Kennywood is charging.

The evening rate on short hours is the same for everyone. Seniors over 60 often don't ride, and if they do, it might be just a few rides. The $14.95 fee beginning at 6 p.m. does not justify the value. Why not charge a fee of $8 for the seniors and allow a portion of it to be spent on food, or just a small fixed admission fee?

Last year there were many negative letters about this practice, but I see from the early advertisements this year on the radio that the policy will not change.

I hope Kennywood will be a great neighbor and consider the concerns of the senior population.

Robert M. Aber
Munhall

Handel with care

It is wonderful to read reviews covering the rich variety of classical music taking place in Pittsburgh in venues other than the concert hall, highlighting performances by local musicians as well as little-known international artists.

It is, however, frustrating and counterproductive to the vibrant yet fragile community of music lovers and performers when the reviewer misses the whole significance of the occasion and then further employs scathing pejoratives while offering no evidence musically to support his sweeping "black and white" opinions.

Sadly (to use the reviewer's own description) Eric Haines' review of Handel's "Brockes Passion" at Calvary Episcopal Church (April 17) totally lacks perspective of the event, while offering no balanced musical criticism.

Calvary's director of music, Alan Lewis, presented to Pittsburgh a vital work of Handel that one would only expect to find in New York or Europe. He assembled a local group of soloists to sing the very specialized roles, an orchestra playing period instruments, and a very capable choir singing in a straight-toned fashion. This was a scholarly performance requiring forces much larger than our local community could afford to import. And it was offered with no admission charge in one of the country's most beautiful churches right here in Pittsburgh. That is truly monumental.

Some of Mr. Haines' comments about performers fall victim to a vicious tendency to arrogantly express strong opinion -- any opinion -- about some subject that the reviewer often (and understandably) has far less knowledge than the performer. To this listener, soprano Sara Botkin (described as "shrill crooning") was the star of the entire performance, demonstrating considerable stylistic integrity while maintaining perfect pitch throughout the three-hour performance.

Pittsburgh deserves more accurate and helpful reviews of local musicians. It would be to the benefit of the whole community.

Peter Luley
Highland Park

Ambitious 'Youth'

Our thanks, along with the gratitude of avid Pittsburgh filmgoers everywhere, goes out to the Post-Gazette for its devoted film coverage in general, and this week's particular attention to "The Best of Youth."

Since this film (only two prints struck) has been circulating the country for nearly a year now, we have had countless patrons recall to us where and when they read about the Italian epic in periodicals elsewhere (New York, Los Angeles, Top 10 lists, etc.), but they have cited local press attention in the past week as the factor responsible for reminding them about the film, reinforcing their visit to the Oaks Theater.

The admittedly complex equation of our two-part show schedule (as well as our partner promotional offers at La Prima Espresso and Boulevard Bistro) has been reported clearly in everything we have read, which has added much-needed understanding to the interest and awareness you have helped us generate.

While the economic risk factor in booking a weeklong six-hour two-part subtitled feature at a single-screen theater is obvious to anyone, we have been pleasantly satisfied with the turnout this past weekend (soon more than 500 attendees) and are confident in the word-of-mouth that continues to build.

Bottom line: I know that a six-hour film can be a burden in the lives of film critics whose personal and work schedules are often complicated by programmers and managers like myself. But with only a few posters (no trailers), a modest advertising budget, no advertising support from the distributor, and the DVD already on store shelves, we relied on your press coverage to draw attention to this film presentation more than most anything else in recent memory.

I sincerely appreciate your time, space, ink, and energy watching and reviewing this true movie event. The fact that the Pittsburgh population (along with folks attending from Greensburg, Indiana, Butler, and elsewhere) has had an opportunity to savor "The Best of Youth" on the big screen owes in large part to your consideration, support and recognition of its merit. I hope you can take pride in helping draw attention to a cultural experience this unique, and privileging your readers -- and our patrons -- to a memorable film experience.

Jared Earley
Manager, The Oaks Theater

Sculpted garden

Regarding "Beware the Obtuse" (Feedback, April 20): My wife, Sherle, (she of the green thumb) was "hurt" by Adam Lynch's castigation of her newly designed, built and tenderly tended sculpture garden inside the Michael Berger Gallery space.

But I think Mr. Lynch is more to be pitied than censured.

He is the victim of a randomly taken, carelessly selected and poorly reproduced photograph (it actually looks pretty good on the PG Web site) and from this he has formed an opinion. I assure you that Mr. Lynch has never set foot in our gallery!

Michael Berger Gallery has brought Fang Lijun's 14 sculptures and seven giant woodcuts all the way from Beijing to Pittsburgh for our friends and neighbors to see and perhaps buy. In fact, Mr. Fang's "Nature" sculptures have never before been shown in the United States.

Yet Mr. Lynch can't get from Mon-roeville to our gallery in Point Breeze to see for himself this exhibition of one of China's foremost living artists.

If he did, Mr. Lynch would recognize that the vital, the provocative, and the spiritual in art can be felt only by confronting the works themselves. He might even agree that art, like life, must be experienced firsthand.

Michael Berger
Director, Michael Berger Gallery