http://www.metro.usen-us For a reality TV show, “Ace of Cakes” presents an almost unheard of problem to fans. Instead of delving into petty problems between castmates, it focuses on the cake — no backstabbing, no messy hook-ups, no drama except the occasional bumpy fondant. Which is fine, until you fall in love with cutie decorator Jeff and what to know more than his theories on royal icing.http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/20/08/3934-82/index.xml Ryan Landry and his Gold Dust Orphans have long been having their way with some of the greatest films of all time. Finally, the men, women and not-so-easily-identifiable members of this ridiculously talented troupe take on the big kahuna of camp, “Valley of the Dolls.”http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/20/06/5734-82/index.xml He’s been lauded around the world as an “art-world rock star,” but 36-year-old Swiss artist Urs Fischer insists his work is rooted in the simplest of instincts.http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/19/02/4727-82/index.xml To research his historical piece on the Harlem Renaissance, “Uptown,” Ailey star Matthew Rushing used modern technologies. “YouTube was a great help.  I searched for Charleston and Lindy Hop, started purchasing books and DVDs,” he explains. “Part of the dance is called ‘Rent Party’ — the Harlem Renaissance is where rent parties started.”http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/19/02/4411-82/index.xml Set 15 years after the original, “Dracula: The Un-Dead” shares many of the same characters — including Mina and Jonathan Harker, and Lucy’s suitors, John Seward and Arthur Holmwood — and unveils them to be, well, in a state of post-traumatic stress after slaying Dracula...http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/18/22/5257-81/index.xml If your New Year’s resolution is to think outside the Broadway box, look no further than the Under the Radar fest, held Jan. 6 to 17 at The Public Theater, which exhibits new, independent and sometimes radical theater and performance from the U.S. and around the world. http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/18/22/3840-82/index.xml The members of the Harvard Lampoon had two reasons for writing their “Twilight” parody. “One of our super-goals is to meet Stephenie Meyer,” says Matthew Grzecki, president of the student-staffed magazine and one of the authors of “Nightlight: A Parody” (Random House, $14).http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/18/06/3529-82/index.xml The fuzzy puppets that inhabit “Avenue Q” won’t teach their audiences how to sing the ABC’s. These mature Sesame Street-like adult puppets have real problems: sex, racism, morals and finding a purpose in life.  http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/18/00/2952-77/index.xml Does Barack Obama speak Simpsons?http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/17/06/0509-82/index.xml Manhood in our culture is up for grabs. Just think Eliot Spitzer, Bernard Madoff, even David Letterman.http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/17/00/5715-81/index.xml With two plays running simultaneously in Philadelphia and New York, playwright P. Seth Bauer’s work is certainly getting around. Add to that the recent production of his play “Karma Cookie” by 1812 Productions, and Bauer appears to be the hardest working writer in Philly. http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/13/04/3305-82/index.xml This winter, skip the lackluster diet of meat and potatoes. “Buy one new seasonal produce item a week, and experiment with it,” dares cookbook author and food counselor Terry Walters. http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/13/02/3432-82/index.xml http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/13/00/4507-77/index.xml A good production of “Fiddler on the Roof” should send you out into the street singing (if only in your head) one of its many famous musical numbers. http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/12/05/1523-82/index.xml Though choreographer Bill T. Jones is not onstage, his sense and sensibility are all over “Serenade/The Proposition,” currently at the Joyce.http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/11/22/2026-82/index.xml Jonathan Safran Foer doesn’t write beach-friendly books. His debut novel, “Everything is Illuminated,” examined the Holocaust, family and tradition while spinning three separate stories through the main character’s broken English. His latest, the nonfiction “Eating Animals,” is no less ambitious, taking on factory farming and our bizarre, complex relationship as a culture with food and animals. http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/10/04/3446-82/index.xml Robin Eldridge is all about method acting, whether intentional or not. As Victorian lady Lucie Manette in “A Tale of Two Cities,” she lays eyes on her father for the first time in 18 years. http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/10/04/3012-82/index.xml In the abstract art world, Jason Hackenwerth has a blockbuster on his hands. His massive balloon sculptures have been in high demand since 2004, and like an indie rocker with an unexpected hit, he now spends much of his time in airplanes and hotels, en route to his next installation. “I guess it’s because it’s so colorful and unusual,” says Hackenwerth. “Kids love it. Anyone can love it. You don’t need an art degree to appreciate it.”http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/06/06/3944-82/index.xml A.J. Jacobs has done some difficult things in the name of research. For his 2004 book “The Know it All,” he read all 33,000 pages of the “Encyclopedia Britannica.” Then for 2007’s “The Year of Living Biblically,” he spent 365 days adhering to scripture. Even so, he wasn’t prepared for the month he had to practice Radical Honesty for his latest, “The Guinea Pig Diaries.”http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/06/06/3124-82/index.xml Where to go and what to do!http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/11/06/00/3641-77/index.xml