About Saint Louis City County, MO

The nation's largest and oldest outdoor amphitheatre

Growing up in rural Missouri in a family of 8, my parents wanted to expose us to the amenities in the city as well as the country. So at least once a summer, we would all pack into the car and head for St. Louis to see one of The Muny productions. My mother would choose the production based on the cast. We always packed a "baloney spread" and came early to get our choice of the free seats.

So recently when I was given an assignment in my photography class to explore focal length, I decided to head to Forest Park and landed at The Muny. It gave me pause and brought back very fond memories. It also made me think that hanging out here in the winter for some meditative contemplation wouldn't be so bad either.

The Muny is an outdoor amphitheatre that seats 11000 people with approximately 1500 free seats. It is the nations's "oldest and largest outdoor musical theatre." The seasons run every year from mid-June to mid August.

According to the history of The Muny, the vision was probably hatched in 1904 at the World's Fair and then in 1914 when Luther Ely Smith began staging productions on Art Hill in Forest Park. Next came Margaret Anglin in 1916 with her production of As You Like It in 1916 between 2 oak trees that is now the actual site of The Muny. The crowds for this production averaged 8000 and moved it into the history books as the first production at The Muny.

But the vision became a reality in 1917 with the construction of the Municipal Theatre for six performances of AIDA, produced for the 13th Annual Convention of Advertising Clubs of the World. So with a $5000 budget for the project, The Muny was built in 49 days. The Opera Committee brought to St. Louis the opera world's finest, Manuel Salazar from the San Carlo Opera. And, on June 5, 1917, 12000 vistors and St. Louisans were in attendance for the inaugural performance which was shortened by rain.

In 1919 the new theatre was named The Municipal Opera Association of St. Louis, aka "The Muny". That year the first show featured then Mayor Henry Kiel as King Richard.

Through the years since 1914, the Muny produces seven Broadway-quality musicals, from The King and I (one year with Yul Brenner himself) to newer shows like Dreamgirls which will be one of the productions in the 2012 Season. It's tradition! among St. Louisans. And thanks to a $1 million donation from David B. Lichtenstein Foundation, Cafe One will open in 2014 on the east side of the Muny where theater-goers have gathered in the past for preshow picnics and music.

It's not too early to get your season

tickets for The Muny 2012.

More of the history of The Muny.

Youth Programs

Click on the picture for a slideshow of The Muny in winter.

Anxious to start my year with the resolution to live each moment with gusto!

...and wishing you the same.

Real Estate Trends in St. Louis City 2012

St. Louis urban is attracting a lot of young couples to many of St. Louis' older neighborhoods. One of the areas that is filled with a lot of energy and enthusiasm is "Dogtown". Located directly across the "street" from our wonderful Forest Park, the housing stock here is very affordable. It is definitely a walkable neighborhood. It is very convenient to public transportation and many of the attractions that our city has to offier

This home located in dogtown is offered at a very affordable price of $135000. Situated at 1580 Louisville, it features a very artistic touch and an updated kitchen.

The graphs below show St. Louis City Real Estate statistics from January 1, 2011 through October 31, 2011. Feel free to jump in the market as a buyer or seller, there is a market.

(The reports shown are based on data available at the end of October 2011 and are based on data supplied by the Greater St. Louis MLS. Data maintained by the MLS may not reflect all real estate activities in the market. )

We aren't out of the woods but we are maintaining. The most important statistic in the graph below is the absorption rate. As a seller it is the thermometer of how aggressive to be in getting your home noticed.

Free Home Value Report

Search for Homes in St. Louis MO

Our St. Louis Caradinal Baseball Team Has Our Town On Fire

Just what is it about winning that changes your mindset. Watching the Cardinal baseball team and the Cardinal fans for the last few weeks is like watching a giant paradigm shift in a whole town. The fans are "together" across all social and economic boundaries. They are fighting to spend $229 per ticket for standing room only when just a few days ago their mindset was lack.

Last fall my husband, Ron, and our friend, Irene joined the curling club for the St. Louis Metropolitan area. The club was the brain child of Nancy and her husband who enjoyed it in Wisconsin and thought they could make it happen here. Last year was the first year and they had enough members for 16 teams. The teams were chosen randomly but with care by Nancy so that they each had a fairness factor in terms of skill and ability. Most of the members had no previous experience.

All of the games were played on Sunday evenings. If you recall, last winter was VERY cold. The stands for the fans was not exactly a comfortable place to be. However, our team had fans at EVERY game. Every game Irene's 92-year-old dad and her husband would be there. I was also there for every game as we watched the team throw their rocks and sweep with their brooms. After about the 2nd game, Mary, Ray's wife, started coming. Then James' mother and his cousins started coming. Our team was usually the only team that had any fans.

James was our team leader because he had played the game in Alaska for many years. Ray had played one year in New York. Irene and Ron had never played before. We formed a real bond - fans and team members. The fans came up with a name, Rockers, and I was commissioned to knit headbands for players and fans alike. Rockers was a play on words factoring in the "rock" that is used in the game and the fact that our team had the oldest average age on the ice. We were a rather motley looking crew and the only team with a name. Every time our team won, the other team was in shock. We really didn't look like winners.

There was a playoff. Our team was #1 going in but all the other teams were still thinking it was a fluke. Every one of the other teams thought they were going to brings us down.

We had a big group there the night of the final championship game (from as far as Austrailia) and you would have thought we had won the World Series when our team had its picture taken holding the trophy. Fans and players were beaming and even crying with delight.

So what is winning all about. Ask a St. Louis Cardinal player or a Cardinal fan OR ask one of the Rockers or their fans. It's an all encompassing "feel good" for sure.

So for the next week I am going to make sure to be the best fan I can be to everyone who is in my circle of friends.

By the way, for those who are interested in curling, here is a link for information on the fall schedule.

Congratulations to the National League Champions for 2011 - The St. Louis Cardinals!!

Those of us in St. Louis who are Cardinal fans - The best baseball fans ever - last night was a pretty exciting night. The Cardinals had a job to do in Milwaukee and they did what they had to do. They Won!

All season long, the Cardinals have not been leading the National League. In fact, as the season wound down, it appeared that the Cardinals' season was nearly over. Down over 10 1/2 games near the end of August, the fact that the Cardinals are in the World Series is truly a Cinderella story. We can't discount the Rally Squirrel either. For those of you who haven't heard of the Rally Squirrel, you must watch the short video below to get up to speed. St. Louis has been overtaken by Rally Squirrel fever. Even the players are swearing by the Squirrel.

The following is the schedule for the 2011 World Series.

Game 1: Wednesday, October 19 - St. Louis @ 7:05 p.m.
Game 2: Thursday, October 20 - St. Louis @ 7:05 p.m.
Game 3: Saturday, October 22 - Arlington, TX @ 7:05 p.m.
Game 4: Sunday October 23 - Arlington, TX @ 7:05 p.m.
Game 5: *Monday, October 24 - Arlington, TX @ 7:05 p.m.
Game 6: *Wednesday, October 26 - St. Louis @ 7:05 p.m.
Game 7: *Thursday, October 27 - St. Louis @ 7:05 p.m.

* if necessary

Cardinal Nation will be attending the games or glued to their TVs. As Jack Buck's famous call said: "Go Crazy Folks, Go Crazy" There are no better fans in the nation than those in Cardinal Nation. GO CARDS!