How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
Arts & Life
- Details
- Written by: Middletown Art Center
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Art Center is opening its first exhibit of 2020, entitled “Dreams,” on Saturday, Feb. 8, from 6 to 8 p.m. with a free public reception.
Join them to see a variety of work in many mediums that speak to the breadth of expression that only a dream state can produce.
Light refreshments and beverages will be available.
“Dreams marks the beginning of our fifth year of operation,” said Director Lisa Kaplan. “We have hosted over 34 exhibits featuring the work of more than 85 amazing artists, most of whom live in Lake County. The MAC itself is a dream come true as we continue to nurture local culture and provide a place for the arts to flourish.”
MAC’s opening receptions and exhibits are well attended and always free.
Dreams will be on view through the end of April. Gallery hours are Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Fridays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and by appointment by calling 707-809-8118.
Artists wishing to learn more about exhibiting at MAC can visit www.middletownartcenter.org/calls-for-work . Calls for the 2020 EcoArts Sculpture Walk and June exhibit AIR will be posted soon.
The MAC is located at 21456 State Highway 175 at the junction of Highway 29 in the heart of Middletown.
Visit www.middletownartcenter.org to stay up to date on all that is happening at MAC and learn more about upcoming calls for work, exhibitions, classes, events, and ways to help support and sustain MAC and its work weaving the arts into daily life in Lake County.
- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The 1979 legal drama, “And Justice For All,” starring Al Pacino, screens at the Soper Reese Theatre on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at 1 and 6 p.m.
Entry to the film is by donation.
Pacino plays a scruffy rebel, strong but vulnerable, low-key but easily ignited, fighting in a slick society for simple rights and a fair shake.
His high voltage performance as a Baltimore lawyer earned him a Best Actor nomination, with a nomination also going to Valerie Curtain and Barry Levinson for best screenplay.
The film stands out for its strong direction, bright performances, stinging script, ace camera work and a jaunty music score.
The movie is sponsored by Tomkins Tax Consultants. Rated R for language. Run time is 1 hour and 59 minutes.
The Soper Reese Theatre is located at 275 S. Main St., Lakeport, 707-263-0577, www.soperreesetheatre.com .
- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Just two-tenths of a mile from the Soper-Reese on South Forbes Street sits Lakeport Christian Center, home to a vibrant and dynamic faith community whose sanctuary happens to offer pristine, warm acoustics perfectly suited to small ensemble music.
“It is the ideal venue to experiment and workshop new material,” exudes LCC Worship Leader and jazz saxophonist, Matt Rothstein. “In January, we brought one of the finest percussionists in the North Bay Area up to be part of a unique concert blending jazz and Indian ragas, and he was truly blown away by the space.”
On Wednesday, Feb. 12, at 6:30 p.m., Rothstein will present his trio, RAY3, with very special guest, Tom Aiken.
“RAY3 is unapologetically a jazz group, in the tradition of the robust and searching trios of Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, and Joshua Redman,” notes Rothstein. “There will be plenty of space in this program for each of the musicians to stretch, and this is an incredible collection of regional talent!”
Providing the harmonic foundation is virtuoso bassist Pierre Archain, who anchored some of the most engaging jazz groups in San Francisco for decades.
“Pierre’s playing is at once muscular and poetic,” remarks Rothstein, “and it is always astounding to stand in proximity and feel the sheer force of his creativity.”
Mendocino’s Gabriel Yañez is a percussionist of uncommon insight, drawing on all aspects of the jazz tradition and the fertile tributaries of mathematics.
“There is a reason Gabe is one of the busiest musicians on the North Coast right now,” notes Rothstein. “He is growing by leaps and bounds and constantly challenging himself to new heights. Gabe is one of the most remarkable musicians in Northern California, in any genre!”
“Tom Aiken is the perfect musician to complement this group,” continues Rothstein. “He frames melodies, improvised and pre-composed, with a clarity and logic that is unique. Lake County knows Tom is equally likely to bring rocking, blues-drenched sensibilities and classical elegance, and that is a fantastic world of possibilities to add to RAY3.”
Rothstein’s own unique blend of jazz, folk and gospel music has brought recognition from the Grammy Foundation and Down Beat Magazine, and performances at the world-renowned Healdsburg Jazz Festival and the Sequoia Room in Fort Bragg, and he is very excited to bring this outstanding group to Lakeport.
“This promises to be a rewarding evening of thoughtful music from a collective of musicians with the tools and sense of adventure to uncover the extraordinary,” states Rothstein.
All ages are encouraged to attend, and admission is free. Donations will be appreciated.
Lakeport Christian Center is located on 455 S Forbes St. near the old Lakeport DMV building.
- Details
- Written by: Ted Kooser
This week and next I want to show you two beautiful poems of grief and loss by David Baker, from his new and selected poems, Swift, published in 2019 by W. W. Norton.
Baker teaches at Denison University in Ohio and is the poetry editor of Kenyon Review, one of our most distinguished literary journals.
Faith
It was midday before we noticed it was morning.
The boy cousins brought us a tray—soup and cheese,
warm soda, and a soft cloth and candy for her fever.
They wouldn't come in, the tray weighing between them.
They stood like woodwork inside the door frame.
By afternoon the old procession—silence at the lip
of a dozen night travelers tired and grieving, one
by one, or pairs floating to the bed and back
with a touching of hands like humming,
and the one we gathered for slipping farther
for all the good we could do. She lay in her shadow.
She looked to no one. Her daylilies bobbed wide
open out in the wild, blue sun and the same bee
kept nosing her window to reach them.
Dusk: even the boys were back watching it try.
American Life in Poetry does not accept unsolicited manuscripts. It is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2019 by David Baker, "Faith," from Swift, (W. W. Norton, 2019). Poem reprinted by permission of David Baker and the publisher. Introduction copyright @2020 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction’s author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.