Roundup: You don't want to grow up without music and art
Roundup: You don't want to grow up without music and art
Peter Pan at Brook Haven, Amiot-inspired costumes, North Star Gala for the Center for the Arts, and more
Middle School Musical
Brook Haven Middle School students put on a production of Peter Pan on Friday night to a full auditorium at the school. The production was directed by Vanessa Frost of North Bay Theatrics (northbaytheatrics.org) and involved 40 students in acting roles and crew. The day before, the students held three performances for Park Side students.
The students worked for ten weeks on the production. In the role of Peter Pan was Audrey Stafford; Tinker Bell was played by Jax Walkley. Captain Hook was played by Chloe Daniels. All of them got to sing as loud as they could the song: “I won’t grow up.”
I won't grow up
I won't grow up
I don't wanna go to school
I don't wanna go to school
Just to learn to be a parrot
Just to learn to be a parrot
And recite a silly rule
And recite a silly rule
If growing up means it would be beneath my dignity to climb a tree
I'll never grow up never grow up, never grow up, never grow up
Not me!
Not I!
Not me!
Not me!
It’s good to see music and theater in the schools.
Am I an Amiot?
Willard MacDonald and Ken Murphy had the perfect costumes for strolling down Florence Avenue on Halloween. They were dressed up as “campers”, one of Patrick Amiot’s sculptures. They each had a stick with a marshmallow made of foam on the end. They do look like a couple of Amiots.
Brilliant.
Ken and Willard have known each other since college. Ken Murphy lives in Oakland and works as a software developer. “I have a lot of creative interests, such as music, art, and time-lapse photography and electronics,” Ken said. He built a time-lapse photography study of the Bay that was exhibited at the Exploratorium. Willard MacDonald lives in Sebastopol and he’s the founder of Solmetric, a solar-energy equipment manufacturer. Both Ken and Willard get together to play music.
Ken had the idea last year that Patrick’s work might make a fun Halloween costume. “I really like his humor, playful style and his creative re-use of discarded objects.” They scouted Florence Avenue to find specific sculptures and chose the “campers.” It took them three days to make the costumes of out of cardboard and foam and hot glue.
“On Florence Avenue I wasn’t sure at first what the reaction would be, but it was very positive,” said Ken. “We made our way to Patrick's house, where he had a band set up facing the street. After watching them play for a few minutes, I heard a knock on my costume and turned to see a man dressed as a zombie sea captain. He said "hi, I'm the creator." It was Amiot himself.
“We finally made our way down to the original sculpture, and met the owners of the house who host it in their yard. They seemed really appreciative as well.”
SebArts North Star Gala
The Sebastopol Center for the Arts sold out its first big fundraiser on Saturday night. It’s a big boost for an organization that is rebounding from a difficult period and a great showing of support for SebArts in the community. There was plenty of good food and live music for all the guests. Sebastopol Community Harmonia, a choral group that meets on Monday at the Art Center, was led by John Maas in singing a beautiful rendition of “Sure on this Shining Night.”
Serafina Pallendech, who has been Executive Director for four months, said that SebArts now has a North Star to guide them, building on the theme of the Gala. She described three pillars for SebArts now and into the future: 1) fiscal responsibility; 2) community; and 3) innovation. She mentioned that the organization had received a grant to create an arts incubator that will help six young artists build a career in the arts. She also talked about art programs for children.
President Sally Baker announced several awards to “recognize outstanding contributions” to SebArts. The first Volunteer of the Year award went to Carol Rehm. The Service Organization of the Year went to both Rotary Clubs. J.T. Martin, in accepting the award, said that “instead of thanking the Rotary, the Rotary wants to thank the Sebastopol Center for the Arts for all that it does for the community.” In introducing the recipient of the second Volunteer of the Year award, Pallendech said that this one person does so much for SebArts. She added “And if she can’t do it, she has a cousin who will.” The award went to Cynthi Stefenoni, honoring her work on the Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival. Stefenoni addressed the audience, saying that “creators, inventors, and imaginers bring hope and light to the world.” She said with conviction that we need art now more than ever in our lives and our community.
A live auction with MC Shawna McNulty, formerly of Beach Blanket Babylon, resulted in enthusiastic bidding, and McNulty and Stefenoni joining together on stage to sing a Broadway tune. It’s clear that SebArts means a lot to many people and it was demonstrated by all the volunteers working the event as well as those who attended and gave generously. It was also reflected in the energy and creativity of the event itself, for which its leadership can be proud.
Roundup on Roundup
A few people have complained about the word “roundup” as the name of this column. It reminds them of the weed killer containing glyphosate, which is banned in Sonoma County. Sure, but I’d hate to give up on a perfectly good word because Monsanto/Bayer laid claim to it. On Substack, the Green Drive by Paul Hormick published an article that caught my attention:
Information needs rounding up now and then. There’s no harm in doing that and calling it a roundup.
Week of October 30-November 4
At the gala, a reader who appreciates the Police Logs recalled that when Ernie Joyner owned the Sebastopol Times, the Police Logs identified people by name.
Thanks to those who responded to this week’s petition for paid subscribers - All Subscribers Day. We are up to 591 paid subscribers and getting closer to this month’s goal of 600.