A Press Democrat Blog

Arts

Dan Taylor on the fine arts scene.

Birds of Chicago opens Lagunitas Brewing Co. show

Friday, at 7:00 by

Searching for something you haven’t heard before? You might try this group. They call themselves Birds of Chicago, and they describe themselves as a musical collective. At the core of this collective are JT Nero, of the Chicago rock and soul band, JT and the Clouds, and Allison Russell, of the Canadian urban folk band, Po’ Girl. They’ll open at 6 p.m. Monday, May 27, for a 7:15 p.m. show starring California Honeydrops, in the “mini-amphitheatre” at the Lagunitas Brewing… Read More »

‘Out of Order’ one-night art show May 25 in downtown Santa Rosa

Wednesday, at 11:08 by

A vacant, two-story warehouse on a side street in downtown Santa Rosa will become an art gallery for just one night this weekend. “Out of Order,” a free exhibition of work by more than 40 artists from Sonoma County to the United Kingdom, will run from 4:30 p.m. to midnight Saturday (May 25) at the former site of the Santa Rosa Printing Co., 575 Ross St. The show is the brainchild of Roman D’Argenzio, 26, who staged the monthly “Kaleidoscope”… Read More »

“Heavy Metal” movie from 1981 screened at Roxy 14 in Santa Rosa

Wednesday, at 7:00 by

In 1981, a movie came out that combined the talents of giants in two very different fields: comic books and rock ‘n’ roll. It was called “Heavy Metal,” after the slick, magazine-format comic book, an American version of the similar French magazine, “Metal Hurlant.” Now you can see it on the big screen again, after several decades, at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 30, at the Roxy Stadium 14 cinemas, 85 Santa Rosa Ave., Santa Rosa. The screening will be followed… Read More »

Healdsburg Museum exhibits memorabilia from actor Fred MacMurray’s nearby ranch

Tuesday, at 7:00 by

Fred MacMurray is remembered as a successful screen actor, from his dark portrayal of a desperate man in the 1944 crime drama “Double Indemnity” to the title role of Disney’s “Absent-Minded Professor” in 1961. Above all, he was the ultimate father figure, whether he was playing the exasperated dad in the original “Shaggy Dog” film in 1959, or the wiser, calmer patriarch in 12 seasons of TV’s “My Three Sons,” from 1960 to 1972. In the Healdsburg area, MacMurray and… Read More »

Sebastopol artist Ned Kahn proposes $2 million sculpture at Denver airport

Monday, at 12:00 by

Internationally recognized Sebastopol sculptor Ned Kahn’s proposal for a $2 million public art installation at the Denver International Airport is moving through the approval process. “Earlier this year, the airport had a big competition and got it down to a couple of proposals, and they picked mine. The project still has to jump through a couple of approval hopes,” Kahn said. “They need to get their local city council to approve it.” The piece Kahn plans will be a kinetic… Read More »

6th Street Playhouse wins six Critics Circle awards

Thursday, at 7:00 by

The 6th Street Playhouse in Santa Rosa has won six awards from the San Francisco/Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle for 2012. The Playhouse won for best ensemble performing in a theater with 100-300 seats for its production of “August: Osage County.” The show also won awards in that division for Jill Zimmerman, as best principal female in a play; John Browning, best featured male in a play, and Marty Pistone “best specialty,” for his fight choreography. For its Studio Theater… Read More »

New season opens in August at Wells Fargo Center

Wednesday, at 12:00 by

Wells Fargo Center will kick off its 2013-2014 season in August in a newly renovated auditorium, with shows by soul diva Patti LaBelle, singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile, country music superstar Randy Travis and comedian Ron White. The opening blitz includes: LaBelle, Aug. 16, with tickets priced from $79 to $119; Carlile, Aug. 18, $39-$49; Travis, Aug. 21, $45-$59, and White, Aug. 24, $62-$172. The season also features comedy by Lewis Black on Sept. 13, $47.50-$57.50; an appearance by stars from the… Read More »

New Freedom Jazz Choir performs in Santa Rosa

Tuesday, at 7:00 by

The new HJF (Healdsburg Jazz Festival) Freedom Jazz Choir, a chorus of more than 100 voices, led by jazz bassist Marcus Shelby and accompanied by his 17-piece orchestra, will perform Saturday, May 18, in Santa Rosa. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. in the Glaser Center, 547 Mendocino Ave. Admission: $20. The program will include “Soul of the Movement: Meditations on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” a jazz suite written by Shelby. Performers will include Faye Carol, and Adam Ivey’s… Read More »

Navajo dancer and musician Tony Redhouse to perform in Petaluma

Monday, at 9:17 by

Tony Redhouse, Grammy-nominated performer from Tucson, Ariz., will perform at a “Native American Song Dance & Music Concert” from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, May 25, at the Petaluma Veterans Memorial Building, 1094 Petaluma Blvd. S. Redhouse, a dancer, musician and spiritual teacher of the Navajo Nation, also teach a “Dream Catcher Workshop” from 1 to 3 p.m. the same day at the same location. Admission costs $20 for the concert. The workshop fee is $7 for ages 7 to… Read More »

Former Sonoma County artist hosts Australian TV series

Friday, at 10:50 by

Followers of local fine arts may remember an Australian painter named Graeme Stevenson, who lived and worked in Sonoma County for a decade, from 1991 to 2001, before returning to his homeland. He was back in Santa Rosa recently, talking about his Australian reality television series, “Put Some Color In Your Life.” A husky 54-year-old, with piercing blue eyes and reddish and white hair and beard, Stevenson doesn’t look much like the art critic type you might expect to host… Read More »