ABERDEEN - The projector is off at Bow Tie Strathmore Cinemas in Aberdeen.

The cinema's sign is covered. A township building permit for the interior's demolition, dated last Thursday, is on the door.

Replacing the Strathmore at 1055 Route 34 will be the craft brewery and brew pub Alternate Ending Beer Co. The pub is expected to open in the spring of 2020.

Mayor Fred Tagliarini said the building's landlord expects to start the renovation process next month. Nearby stores also will have new facades too.

"The stores will have a matching look to the restaurant," Tagliarini said. "He is going to renovate the entire shopping center."

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Alternate Ending plans to split the 9,000-square-foot building down the middle, with half dedicated to its production space and half for the taproom, which will seat approximately 150 people with additional standing capacity.

Founder and head brewer Scott Novick has said the taproom will also include a room with a 250-inch movie screen for playing classic films, kids' movies and newer releases for free on at least a weekly basis. It also will be available for private parties and corporate events.

Bow Tie Cinemas has owned the Strathmore since 2012, when it took over from Clearview Cinemas. But the building has been a movie theater for decades.

"We are sorry to see it go, but then at the same time, we always appreciate new business coming into town," Tagliarini said. "I guess they just can't compete with the lounge chair theaters, as I call them.

"It certainly has served its purpose over the years," the mayor said.

The Strathmore also was the former home to Friday Nite Specials, the “Rocky Horror Picture Show” performance troupe that’s been celebrating the 1975 cult classic musical with weekly midnight Friday screenings since December 2004.

The show has now been relaunched at Bow Tie's Red Bank theater.

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The “Hip Hop Nutcracker” is the new Nutcracker standard as far as I’m concerned. The original 19th-century classic, adapted from an E.T.A. Hoffman story and set to Tchaikovsky’s score, has since become a Christmas time mainstay, and now it’s been given a fresh, evocative, and totally funky update. From what I could tell, the audience certainly responded. It was a party at the Strathmore with plenty of orchestrated clapping, dancing in the aisles, and even a little “Rapper’s Delight.”

…fresh, evocative, and totally funky update…It really is a delightful two hours…a performance that isn’t afraid to play with a few traditions in order to create some bold new ones.

The show begins with a lively introduction from the evening’s MC, none other than rap pioneer Mr. Kurtis Blow. It was a triumph of nostalgia as the production opened. Blow brought the audience along on a mini hip-hop journey for the ages. His old school rewind hit all the right notes, “Rapper’s Delight,” “Hip Hop Hooray,” “Just a Friend,” “Jump Around.” Iconic classics spun to perfection by DJ Boo accompanying Blow’s bring-the-house-down renditions.

Scanning the audience, you could immediately tell this was a fond Gen-X moment, with their children, and yes, grandchildren, looking on in awe likely wondering how all these 45+ year-olds knew the words…and the moves.

After warming up the multigenerational crowd, Kurtis Blow turned it over to violinist Vivek Menon whose electrifying violin technique really set the tone for the rest of the performance. Most are familiar with the basic plot of the original ballet. Nutcracker comes to life, a Christmas “battle” ensues between the gingerbread soldiers and the mice led by the Mouse King, a bewildered young Clara looking on. The mice are defeated, the Nutcracker is transformed into a Prince, and he and Clara are whisked off to the delectable domain of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

The Hip Hop Nutcracker sticks with a similar plot while adding in a few modern-day twists: the Nutcracker (Gabriel Emphasis) is now a street vendor. In defense of Maria-Clara (Ann-Sylvia Clarke), the Nutcracker defeats the Mouse King (Randi “Rascal” Freitas, who seemed to be having the time of her life on stage) with the help of Drosselmeyer (the show-stealing Lisa “LBoogie” Bauford) and a pair of red magic sneakers, calling up a definite Dorothy in Oz kind of vibe. The Land of Sweets is now a throwback nightclub, and Maria-Clara ultimately helps her on-the-verge of divorcing parents reconcile.

The show, adapted by Mike Fitelson, deftly blends contemporary themes with the classic roots of this performance. But what it all comes down to, of course, is the dancing. The dancers are expressive; they’re willing to leave it all on the floor; and they compel audiences to want to get up and move. Hip hop set to Tchaikovsky is an experience that you can only truly appreciate firsthand. The fun the ensemble has is unbelievably contagious. Director and choreographer Jennifer Weber provides a distinctively creative point of view here, and it serves the performance well.

There are just so many elements that come together to make The Hip Hop Nutcracker work. The costumes (original design by Whitney Adams) help define hip-hop culture as set against this particular backdrop. They are clever plays on more conventional interpretations of how Nutcracker dancers are generally costumed. Brandon Stirling Baker’s lighting design plays tricks with just about every aspect of the stage and does so brilliantly. And then of course, we have Moe Shahrooz’s inspired video design. The scenes for the performance are established through projected images of city streets and other such backdrops, some prove downright magical—it snows, ornamented Christmas trees spring up out of nowhere—the magic of tech meets the magic of Christmas.

It really is a delightful two hours as you get to see a performance that isn’t afraid to play with a few traditions in order to create some bold new ones.

Running time: Two hours including a twenty-minute intermission.

“The Hip Hop Nutcracker” runs through December 22, 2022 presented by the New Jersey Performing Arts Center at The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD 20852. For more information and tickets on this and upcoming events, go online. on upcoming events at the Strathmore, click here. Strathmore encourages wearing masks inside their buildings.

Officials from New Jersey American Water were present at the Aberdeen Township Council meeting Jan. 15 in order to answer questions about the series of water main breaks in Strathmore over the weekend.

Mayor Fred Tagliarini estimates that there were at least 9 breaks between Friday night and Sunday night in the F-section, I-section, O-section, C-section and on Lloyd Road near the N-section.

"There were at least five in the F-section alone. I think nine is a very safe number. And then on top of that there was a water tower in the I-section that was losing thousands of gallons a minute and they had to find that leak. That could have impacted all of Strathmore," he said.

Tagliarini, who lives in Strathmore, noted that he and his wife spent nearly the entire weekend without running water.

"We were without water, on and off, from Friday night to Monday morning. The last break was somewhere in the 9 p.m. hour Sunday evening," he said. "So just about when we started getting used to running water again Sunday evening, there was another break."

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Kevin Keane, the NJAW local field manager, explained that the company has seen a spike statewide in water main breaks due to cold temperatures causing pipes to shift. However, he added that the pipes in Strathmore are deteriorating at a faster than normal pace.

"Aberdeen pipe is challenging. The soil conditions in Aberdeen are pretty harsh on the pipe. The pipe was installed in the late 40s and 50s and it should last longer than it is. The soil is basically eating away at the pipe," he said at the meeting.

Keane explained that when a water main breaks, the water must be turned off to make the repair. However, depending on the condition of the pipe, when the water is turned back on it may cause damage further down the line.

"The problem with the water main when the integrity starts to diminish, when you turn off the water the soil pressure is now pushing on the water main and that creates more stress and then when you turn the water back on that stress tends to cause more water main breaks down the road," he said.

In order to try and slow the number of water breaks in the F-section, the water company reduced the water pressure in the pipes and left a hydrant open to handle any water surges, Keane explained. That can only be a short term fix, however.

"The long term fix is to replace the pipe and we've been pretty aggressive. We've replaced about 98% of the pipe in the A-section and the C-Section which had a lot of problems a few years ago has been quiet overall," he said. "We've had the same issues in the D-section, on Deerfield there were about 14 main breaks over there. We're in the D-section now replacing pipe over there. Our plan is to have the D-section replaced by year end."

Tagliarini said the company has an approximately six-year capital improvement plan that was approved at the end of 2012 by the Board of Public Utilities.

"I think they will want to reevaluate and see if any section has to be put ahead of the others," he said.

The township is in the process of scheduling a formal meeting with New Jersey American Water to evaluate the situation in Strathmore, according to Tagliarini.

But for those who love the longtime local movie theater, don't completely despair: They will still be showing free movies at the new brewery, once it opens.

The brewery will be called Alternate Ending and they plan to open in the spring of 2020, said business owner Scott Novick, who grew up in Morganville.

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Now let's talk about the beer!

Novick is a self-described "beer nerd." After college, he got a job in his field working in commercial operations for Nickelodeon and VH1. But he loves beer and always had dreams of working in that industry. When a round of layoffs came, Novick said he volunteered.

"I got a big severance package and I knew this was my chance," he said.

Immediately after losing his job, Novick signed up for an online course at a beer brewing school in Vermont. He also got a five-week apprenticeship working at Jughandle Brewing in Tinton Falls. From there, he was hired to work at Other Half Brewing Company in Brooklyn, one of the biggest IPA breweries in the country. He was so eager to get his foot in the door, he volunteered for an overnight shift cleaning the kegs.

"I loved it. I could have stayed there forever and kept learning about the beer-making process," said Novick.

But the long commute into the city and his frequent overnight shifts started to drain on his family. His wife wanted him to find a job closer to home. Novick had always dreamed of opening his own brewery. When he heard the owners of Bow Tie wanted to end their lease, he seized the chance.

"We were able to acquire a liquor license as a restricted brewery, which is pretty rare," said Novick. "There are only about 20 of those in the state that have that. It means we're allowed to serve food, show sporting events and have private parties."

All the beer they serve will be brewed in house.

"We're definitely going to be IPA focused. We've been working on a stout recipe for almost six years now and we think we've perfected it. We'll have five or six IPAs on tap, two different stouts and hopefully some sours," he said. "We haven't hired a chef yet, but the food will be high-end gourmet casual."

New Jersey's craft breweries are definitely having a "moment," with the state giving out more licenses and encouraging their growth. There's Jughandle in Tinton Falls, Raritan Bay Brewing Company in Keansburg, Belford Brewing and a farmhouse brewery is supposed to open soon in Colts Neck, called Source Brewing.

Novick couldn't be happier.

"Breweries are conducive to families. It's fun: You can go and have a beer or two and not get drunk. I envision local families coming in here for a Sunday brunch, having a beer brewed in Aberdeen or a mimosa while a movie plays in the background. I'm just so excited. I get goosebumps thinking about our soft opening."

Their website is aebeer.com and you can find them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @aebeerco.

Light pours in the front windows of InStyle Salon, where stylists chat away with clients as they cut, color and style their hair. Mirrors around the salon reflect the warm glow of the sunlight against the light purple walls, adding a touch of comfort to the modernized space.

About four months earlier, however, the ambiance at that very location in Strathmore Shopping Center was much more dim. The owners of Gallo's I Haircutters were making the decision to shut down. On July 14, they closed their doors for a final time.

Although it was sad to see a four-decade-old business come to an end, stylists Jackie Haines and Tammy Barnes, who had worked together at Gallo's for seven years, saw this as the final push they needed to launch their own salon together.

"We became friends while working together and we’re a good team. We approached each other this summer thinking it was time to start our own business, and then things transpired and that happened quicker than we thought," said Haines. "It was a good thing, a positive thing."

Haines and Barnes were originally planning to open the salon in a new location, but as fate would have it the pair ultimately returned to Strathmore.

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"An amazing lawyer by chance told us it was a bad deal, told us to look for something else," Haines said. "After walking in the door [here] we knew it was the right spot. We knew this was where we should all be."

In just four weeks, Haines, Barnes, and their future employees gave the salon a facelift and transformed it into the comfortable yet stylish space they had dreamed of.

"It was an all around effort with all the girls and all their families that put the salon together. We didn’t hire anyone to do anything because all the girls were excited to get the salon open and looking the way our vision was that they came in to work day and night," Haines said.

InStyle Salon officially opened its doors on Sept. 25, and according to the co-owners, the salon was welcomed with open arms by the Aberdeen community.

"Everyone has been so supportive of us and came out on our first week with flowers and cookies and hugs. It was very good and we couldn’t of asked for anything better than that, " Haines said.

The pair is confident that between Haines' thirty two years of experience and Barnes' knowledge of new trends, their partnership will help support a successful salon.

"This is a whole new adventure for us, but what I lack she has and what she lacks, I have," Barnes said.

"That's what it is, experience and youth. We took it and put it together," Haines added.

The women envision a salon where customers can recieve high quality services in a comfortable and clean atmosphere for an affordable price. InStyle provides hair services for children, women, and men with all different hair types.

"We have a very mixed clientele and we have a very mixed staff to accommodate them," Haines said.

Haines and Barnes intend on continuing their ability to offer quality services by holding focused classes to further the education of their employees.

"In this business you definitely have to stay motivated because its always changing, there’s always new trends and styles. We’re definitely also looking to expand and learn more," Barnes said. "You definitely always have to be in motion."

For more information on Instyle, visit their website.