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BY JENNIFER SELF Californian lifestyles editor [email protected]M arissa Mercado has no idea what her “Wedding Dress” cost, but she does know it took a year to save up for it. As in a year of meticulously col- lecting and saving receipts for every last one of her purchases — bags of Fritos, underwear, even a blow- torch. And the reason has nothing to do with being a pack rat or preparing for a possible IRS audit. Mercado keeps the receipts to cre- ate wearable pieces of art — what a friend of hers calls “performance sculpture.” “This series of receipt garments works on several levels,” said Mer- cado of the wedding dress she cre- ated and is modeling in the photo at right. “There is a personal narrative if you draw near enough to read what is on each receipt. That self-portrait is furthered by the form I sew them in. Still, the broader statement is about consumption and the pur- chasing of identity.” Mercado’s dress is quite possibly the most original piece submitted in the five-year history of Eye Gallery, the annual art series pre- sented by The Californian and the Bakersfield Museum of Art, which debuts today and will run over sev- eral weeks in the pages of Eye Street. But the emphasis on inge- nuity is not by accident: BMoA curator Vikki Cruz set out to fresh- en things up a bit this year by find- ing new faces and perspectives. The result is that most of our artists are young, emerging talents who eschew tradition and convention. And though many of them grew up in Bakersfield, several have chosen to move on to bigger cities to study and work. Mercado, who uses the name Marissa Magdalena professionally, makes her home in Los Angeles, where she’s a guest lecturer and drawing instructor at The Getty, one of the finest art museums in the country. But Mercado is quick to make clear that though she’s grateful for the plentiful opportunities in L.A., the decision to leave her hometown was complicated. “Bakersfield is a well of inspira- tion for me,” said Mercado, 29. “There is no place in the world I’d rather be from. I like to tell people I come by my red cowboy boots hon- estly. The San Joaquin Valley is as fertile ground for culture as it is for crops. I take it with me everywhere I go.” And let it be noted that Mercado, who got married Saturday, didn’t jet off to some exotic honeymoon. Instead, she sat down at her com- puter and answered our questions about art, life and the meaning of it all via email. That’s dedication for you. (But dedication goes only so far: The bride chose not to wear the paper wedding dress on her big day!) Did you tally up how much you spent on the receipts? Thousands! I love that in a sense that is exactly what the dress cost. Tell us about how you put the dress together: The artwork is made from ALL the receipts I collected over a year of my life. ... I have to let the receipts sit for some time while I draw conclusions about what iden- tity I was trying to pursue for the year they were collected. ... I have to bond the receipts together, tak- ing care not to destroy the sensitive ink and paper they are made of. After making a “fabric” of receipts, I cut it according to a clothing pat- tern and run it through my sewing machine! How will your dress be dis- played at the museum? I prefer to parade them on bod- ies, but I can’t afford to house a model at BMoA, so we’ll use a hanger. A year in the making Artist saves receipts for her wearable art ALEX HORVATH / THE CALIFORNIAN Marissa Mercado models “Wedding Dress,” her submission to the 2011 Eye Gallery art series. The dress is made of a year’s worth of receipts that Mercado stitched together. Please see PAGE 21 20 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011 More about Marissa Check out the artist’s work at marissamagdalena.com or consider taking one of her drawing classes at The Getty, where she is an instructor/guest lecturer. She has classes coming up May 15, June 5 and 19. To reserve a spot, visit getty.edu/visit/calendar/events/Courses.html. “Andy Warhol said, ‘Art is what you can get away with.’ As long as I’m getting away with it, I’m having a good time.” — Marissa (Magdalena) Mercado
Marissa Mercado has noidea what her “WeddingDress” cost, but she does
know it took a year to save up for it.As in a year of meticulously col-
lecting and saving receipts for everylast one of her purchases — bags ofFritos, underwear, even a blow-torch. And the reason has nothingto do with being a pack rat orpreparing for a possible IRS audit.Mercado keeps the receipts to cre-ate wearable pieces of art — what afriend of hers calls “performancesculpture.”
“This series of receipt garmentsworks on several levels,” said Mer-cado of the wedding dress she cre-ated and is modeling in the photoat right.
“There is a personal narrative ifyou draw near enough to read whatis on each receipt. That self-portraitis furthered by the form I sew themin. Still, the broader statement isabout consumption and the pur-chasing of identity.”
Mercado’s dress is quite possiblythe most original piece submittedin the five-year history of EyeGallery, the annual art series pre-sented by The Californian and theBakersfield Museum of Art, whichdebuts today and will run over sev-eral weeks in the pages of EyeStreet. But the emphasis on inge-nuity is not by accident: BMoAcurator Vikki Cruz set out to fresh-en things up a bit this year by find-ing new faces and perspectives. Theresult is that most of our artists areyoung, emerging talents whoeschew tradition and convention.And though many of them grew upin Bakersfield, several have chosento move on to bigger cities to studyand work.
Mercado, who uses the nameMarissa Magdalena professionally,makes her home in Los Angeles,where she’s a guest lecturer anddrawing instructor at The Getty,one of the finest art museums inthe country.
But Mercado is quick to makeclear that though she’s grateful for
the plentiful opportunities in L.A.,the decision to leave her hometownwas complicated.
“Bakersfield is a well of inspira-tion for me,” said Mercado, 29.“There is no place in the world I’drather be from. I like to tell people Icome by my red cowboy boots hon-estly. The San Joaquin Valley is asfertile ground for culture as it is forcrops. I take it with me everywhereI go.”
And let it be noted that Mercado,who got married Saturday, didn’t jetoff to some exotic honeymoon.Instead, she sat down at her com-puter and answered our questionsabout art, life and the meaning of itall via email. That’s dedication foryou. (But dedication goes only sofar: The bride chose not to wear thepaper wedding dress on her bigday!)
Did you tally up how much youspent on the receipts?
Thousands! I love that in a sensethat is exactly what the dress cost.
Tell us about how you put thedress together:
The artwork is made from ALLthe receipts I collected over a yearof my life. ... I have to let thereceipts sit for some time while Idraw conclusions about what iden-tity I was trying to pursue for theyear they were collected. ... I haveto bond the receipts together, tak-ing care not to destroy the sensitiveink and paper they are made of.After making a “fabric” of receipts, Icut it according to a clothing pat-tern and run it through my sewingmachine!
How will your dress be dis-played at the museum?
I prefer to parade them on bod-ies, but I can’t afford to house amodel at BMoA, so we’ll use ahanger.
A year inthe makingArtist saves receiptsfor her wearable art
ALEX HORVATH / THE CALIFORNIAN
Marissa Mercado models “Wedding Dress,” her submission to the 2011 Eye Gallery art series. Thedress is made of a year’s worth of receipts that Mercado stitched together.Please see PAGE 21
20 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
More about MarissaCheck out the artist’s work at marissamagdalena.com or consider taking one of her drawing
classes at The Getty, where she is an instructor/guest lecturer. She has classes coming up May 15,
June 5 and 19. To reserve a spot, visit getty.edu/visit/calendar/events/Courses.html.
“Andy Warhol said,‘Art is what you canget away with.’ Aslong as I’m gettingaway with it, I’m
having a good time.”— Marissa (Magdalena)
Mercado
Thursday, May 12, 2011 The Bakersfield Californian 21
Eye Street
BY CAMILLE GAVINContributing columnist
Several new features have been addedto this year’s Walk for the Arts on Sat-urday, and one of them is a scavenger
hunt. “Each person will get a list and they’ll
have to find something at each culturalstop,” said Laura Wolfe of the Arts Councilof Kern, sponsor of the second annualevent designed to celebrate the art scene.
Also, there will be live music at everystopping place indicated on the route map,and refreshments will be offered at many ofthe more than 25 downtown galleries, the-aters and other arts-related businesses thatare participating.
About 400 walkers are expected this year,
and Wolfe said there’s still time to sign up. Ifyou haven’t pre-registered you can do so onSaturday morning at Mill Creek in CentralPark, the starting point for the event (also atthe park this weekend is a bike festival;more on that on Page 30).
By the way, Wolfe told me she’s decidednot to continue as interim director of theArts Council, saying it’s “a bit out of mycomfort zone.” Her contract expires in June.
The board has received a number ofapplications for the position of permanentdirector, she said, but the decision won’t bemade until mid-June.
Scavenger hunt among newfacets of local scene’s outing
Search high and lowat Walk for the Arts
ALEX HORVATH / THE CALIFORNIAN
Marissa Mercado models another of her creative works of art, a headdress made ofmatchbooks. Coming Sunday: Eye Gallery artist Julie Neuberg has a thing for faces.
Walk for the ArtsWhen: 8 a.m. to noon Saturday
Where: Central Park at Mill Creek,
19th and R streets
Information: 324-9000
FELIX ADAMO / THE CALIFORNIAN
Performers from the Spotlight Theatre — from left: Sara Tielsch, Angela Poncetta, HalFriedman and Kat Clowes — dressed in costumes from the production of “All in theTiming” to participate in the Walk for the Arts in 2010.
How delicate is the dress? Is it hardto get in and out of?
Receipts are paper thin — they turnblack in too much sunlight, they fade inany exposure, water, sweat… these pieceshave many enemies. But with care andattention — like so many of us high-main-tenance things — they are well worth it.
After graduating from Ridgeview, youspent a year working for nonprofitsacross the country but ended up com-ing back to Bakersfield. Why?
It was while I was out there in the Midwestand beyond that I really came to an appreci-ation for Bakersfield. I came back andattended BC. It was a very important launchpad for me. There, the same individuals whotaught my dad 30 years before gave me thefundamentals of art. I took nothing but artclasses ’til they told me I couldn’t repeatcourses anymore. At that point it was time tomove on, so I relocated to L.A. to attend OtisCollege of Art and Design.
Do you remember your first artisticexperience?
I had my earliest experiences with sculp-ture building out of the odds and ends thatlined my grandfather’s fence in Arvin. I cutmy teeth on fashion and 3D design amidthe dressing rooms and stage of the Bakers-field Community Theatre. These exposureshave an apparent presence in my artwork.
I suppose it makes sense you wouldtake inventory of the last year of yourlife, when you were engaged, and makea wedding dress with your receipts. Tellus about your wedding.
I JUST got married in my parent’s back-yard in Bakersfield! It was extraordinary totake a huge life step in the same place Ilearned to walk. ... Still have blisters fromall the dancing we did before retiring forthe night at the Padre Hotel!
While my spouse (a musician) and I arecurrently building our first nest in L.A., youbetter believe Bakersfield goes wherever I do.
What do you do with things likedresses made of paper and headdresses
made of matchbooks when you’re fin-ished displaying them?
Store them away from heat! I make suchcombustible work. I like to work in the ten-sion between fragility and volatility.
Do you remember the first work ofart you ever sold?
Can I tell you about the first work I didn’tsell? It was a large drawing on display at aBakersfield coffee shop. A traveler calledme to inquire about the price. I was still inmy foundational studies at BC and quotedwhat I thought was reasonable.
He became skeptical of the workbecause the price was too low! I still have it.If you want to buy it I can overcharge.
Does society value art?
I think our society values art the way itvalues food. We count on it to be there tosustain us, but we want it fast, cheap, andeasy to digest. Some things are worth thecost and the time it takes to chew.
Do you work in more traditionalforms?
Absolutely. I think you need to at leastknow what the traditions are so you canconsciously break from them. I am classi-cally trained and believe strongly inempowering others with the fundamentalsof art.
Eye Gallery, a partnership of The
Californian and the Bakersfield
Museum of Art, is celebrating five
years of bringing the works of dozens
of local artists into the homes of our
readers. Over the next several weeks,
we will unveil truly distinctive pieces
of art — drawings, paintings,
photographs — and interviews with
the artists who created them. Then,
on June 16, we will celebrate the
artists at a reception at BMoA, where
the public is invited to see the art up
close. We’ll have more details as the
date draws near, but mark your
calendars now.
ABOUT EYE GALLERYCONTINUED FROM PAGE 20
22 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
Eye Street
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From a critical standpoint,belt-tightening has actuallybeen a good thing for the
Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra,as it has added some rarities to itsrepertoire to replace the large-scale (and expensive) orchestralfavorites it used to be able toafford.
The closing concert of theorchestra’s 79th season is a goodexample of necessity begettinginvention: Along with two Mozartfavorites — the Overture to theopera “Cosi fan tutte,” and theSymphony No. 41 in C Major (the“Jupiter”) — the orchestra mem-bers will also challenge themselvesand the audience with CharlesIves’ “The Unanswered Question,”
Jean Sibelius’ “TheSwan ofTuonela,” andBela Bartok’sRumanianFolk Dances.
The seasonhas been spicedwith such rari-ties, such as theMarch perform-ance of the
complete Inci-dental Music
to “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”by Felix Mendelssohn, completewith excerpts from Shakespeare’splay; Franz Liszt’s “Todentanz”with guest performer Anton Nel inApril; Erich Wolfgang Korngold’sConcerto for Violin in D Majorperformed by Judith Ingolfsson.
Money issues have forced somecompromises — works requiringfewer performers, eliminatingancillary concerts from the calen-dar, forgoing using a professionalopera company — but the orches-tra has, for now at least, beenmusically successful by beinginnovative. BSO fundraiserMichael Chertok said it’s “too closeto tell” whether the orchestra hasbeen equally successful financial-ly.
“It will probably be one moremonth before we know if we finishin the black or with a smalldeficit,” he said.
During that month, the orches-
tra will perform its final concert ofthe season and stage its galafundraiser, “The Pines of Rome,”at the CSUB campus on May 20.
Chertok said the BSO has beenable to “hold steady” with corpo-rate donors — winning some andlosing some — while seeing adecline in season ticket sales.
“People are telling us they’re outof town a lot, they missed a lot ofconcerts, so they’re just buyingtickets as they need them,” Cher-tok said. “That’s just the kind ofthing we hear.”
“I do think we’re holding ourown,” Chertok said about dona-tions. “There’s nothing either upor down for us to get excitedabout.”
The real challenge is addingnew members to the audience orthe donor rolls.
“That’s as tough as I’ve everseen it,” Chertok said.
The two selections by Mozartrepresent the composer in hisfinal years and at the height of hispowers. “Cosi fan tutte” (“Thus dothey all”) is one of the great operamasterpieces, a complicatedcomic opera about fidelity andinfidelity, with a sparkling, sophis-ticated overture. Regarded as theultimate statement of the Classi-cal style of composing, Mozart’s41st and final symphony is theepitome of clarity and order, bely-ing the complexity of the several
musical themes he combines anddevelops.
Ives’ “The Unanswered Ques-tion” is a musical discussion of themeaning of existence, a persistentquestion asked by the trumpet,which the flutes desperatelyattempt to answer. Ives composedthis tone poem in 1906 for achamber ensemble, and arrangedit for orchestra in the 1930s.Finnish composer Jean Sibelius’“The Swan of Tuonela” is anothertone poem, this one a musicalattempt to retell the Finnish leg-
end of the hero Lemminkainen,who is killed while hunting theswan.
The concert includes a suite ofdances by Hungarian composerBela Bartok. Bartok, consideredone of the brightest lights of the20th century, was also devoted tothe collection and promotion offolk music, which he often used inhis compositions, such as theRumanian Folk Dances on theBSO program. Bartok is consid-ered one of the founders of ethno-musicology.
Dr. Jerome Kleinsasser conducts a pre-concert lecture before eachBakersfield Symphony Orchestra subscription concert. The lectureis free to anyone with a ticket.
Thursday, May 12, 2011 The Bakersfield Californian 23
Eye Street
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BY MIRANDA WHITWORTHContributing writer
Today’s kids have no idea what it waslike back in the day when the entirefamily would pile into the car and
head to the local drive-in theater to watch amovie under the stars. But it’s just that open-air viewing experience that the folks at Northof the River Recreation and Parks Depart-ment are trying to revive with this year’sMovies in the Park series, which starts Friday.
Aimed at getting the family out of thehouse, the series starts at North MeadowsPark with a free screening of Disney’s “Tan-gled.” Marketing director Roger Perez saidMovies in the Park brings the theater experi-ence to the great outdoors.
“We have a 16-by-9-foot screen and a nicesound system that you can hear all over thepark. We set up behind the basketball courtsand take up the whole area to the back.”
The event is free for the whole family and,unlike the restrictions at the indoor movietheaters, you can bring your own refresh-ments or take advantage of what the parkhas to offer.
“Bring your blankets and lawn chairs.There are barbecues at the park you can useor you can bring whatever you want food-wise. Just no alcohol, because alcohol is notallowed in our parks.”
The movies start at dusk — which is usual-ly around 8 p.m. — and the event pulls in ahealthy crowd, with past attendance run-ning between 300 to 500 people. The moviesare scheduled a month in advance depend-ing on the weather and other factors. Perezsaid this year NOR plans to show betweeneight and 10 films with the free screenings atleast once a month.
For NOR, Perez said the focus has shiftedfrom larger scale promotions to neighbor-hood-friendly activities.
“We are trying smaller events at a lot moreplaces. The movies are great because you areout in the park and it’s open to everyone. It’sreally a neighborhood event, and we want toshare the wealth. “
The Movies in the Park films are selected
for mass appeal and are always family-friendly. The next screening is “DespicableMe,” scheduled for June 17 at Madison GrovePark.
Another perk of the family evenings is thatthe parks selected for the films all feature wetplay areas. “That way kids can bring theirsuits and get wet then watch the movie whenit gets dark,” Perez said.
If you prefer to watch your moviesindoors, NOR is also kicking off a movieseries in late summer when the days are hotand residents are looking for cheap ways tobeat the heat.
“We are going to start showing moviesduring the day at the Veterans Hall in Oil-dale,” Perez said. “People can come in out ofthe hot weather, and with Oildale — wherethere is a lot of foot traffic — it gives peoplethe chance to get out of the house and dosomething where they don’t have to leavethat area of town.”
As for the schedule for those upcomingevents, Perez said to check the NOR website,where events are scheduled about a monthin advance.
While the weather is still enjoyable, Perezsaid residents should take advantage of theevening movie nights.
“This is an event that really brings peopleout and gets them into the park,” he said. “Ithink a lot the time people get so busy intheir day-to-day lives that they forget thatour parks are there. It gives people thathaven’t been to a park in a long time achance to just get out and play.”
Family-friendly series kicks offFriday at North Meadows Park
NOR offers moviesunder the stars
Movies in the ParkAdmission: Free. Bring blankets,
chairs and refreshments.
Information: norrecreation.org
‘Tangled’When: Dusk Friday
Where: North Meadows Park, 3300
McCray St.
‘Despicable Me’When: Dusk June 17
Where: Madison Grove Park, 10115
Norris Road
DISNEY PICTURES
Rapunzel (voiced by Mandy Moore) confronts Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi) in “Tangled.”
24 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
Eye Street
Make no mistake: Elvislives. Well, his songs do,anyway. And such
favorites as “Love Me Tender,”“Jailhouse Rock” and “Don’t BeCruel” will be front and center Fri-day evening when “All Shook Up”opens at Stars.
Of course the musical comedyisn’t about Presley or his career,but it does have the flavor of the1950s, and Kathi Lowry feels rightat home with both the setting andthe songs.
“I’ve always been an Elvis fanbecause my mom was — still is —so I grew up listening to hismusic,” said Lowry, who’s assistingShay Brandon Burke with directo-rial duties.
Matthew Thompson is featuredas a hip-swiveling, guitar-playingstranger called Chad who roarsinto “a square little town in asquare little state” and proceeds toshake up the equally out-of-touchpopulace.
To make things seem more real-istic, he’ll make his entrance on amotorcycle, but I expect the tech-nical people will have to supplythe sound effects because Lowrytells me there’s a restriction abouthaving gasoline on stage.
“I’m not sure exactly howthey’re going to do it. they’ll prob-ably have to roll it onstage,” Lowrysaid. “But there will be a motorcy-cle.”
Thompson has appeared inseveral shows at Stars and Bakers-field Music Theatre, including“The Full Monty” and “Beauty andthe Beast.” Now 20, he started per-forming when he was 8. He cur-rently works at Cesar ChavezElementary as a magnet activityleader for vocal music and is alsomaking his debut as a vocal direc-tor with “All Shook Up.”
Like a lot of other shows atStars, “All Shook Up” is a familyaffair.
Darren McDonald and his twochildren, Kristine and Daniel,both of whom have lead roles, arein the show. So are Joe Lowry,
A cast of 70 young actors willpresent three performances thisweekend of a show based on old-time folk tales that arose in thehills and valleys of Appalachiaduring the early days of our coun-try’s history.
“Sing Down the Moon:Appalachian Wonder Tales,” has ascore that interweaves music withthe stories, many of which arequite humorous, said VickieStricklind, director of NOR JuniorTheater.
“It’s very different from any-thing we have done before,”
Stricklind said. “We’ll have a liveband playing for us and we will beperforming at the NOR VeteransHall, also a new venue for us.”
Those playing lead rolesinclude Alex Burdick, MelissaEmig, Kyle Gaines, KelseaJohnson, James O’Hearn, HannahSchill, Jessica Theriault and BrettWalker. Julie Gaines is co-director.“Sing Down the Moon” will beperformed this weekend only.
BCT presents ‘Alice inWonderland’
A tea party will precede two ofthis weekend’s performances of“Alice in Wonderland,” whichopens Friday evening at Bakers-field Community Theater.
Each party will be start onehour before the shows’ scheduledcurtain time. The first one on Sat-urday is the “Mad Hatter’s Moon-light Mad Tea Party,” and for thematinee on Sunday it’s called“Alice’s Afternoon Tea Party.”
Tiny cakes and other sweets, aswell as tea and lemonade will besold at each event, said Kim Whit-ney, a BCT board member. Guests
also can have their picture takenwith characters from the show in aspecial tea party setting.
Charlotte Smith appears asAlice, the little girl who falls downa rabbit hole, where she finds her-self in a topsy-turvy world calledWonderland that’s inhabited by allsorts of odd characters created byLewis Carroll in his classic chil-dren’s story.
The show is a production of theBCT Youth Theatre.
Robert Tall organ concertClassically trained organist
Robert Tall of Glendale will returnto First Presbyterian Church onWednesday to present a concerton the organ he helped to design.
Two years ago Tall was invitedto be soloist at the church’s dedi-cation ceremony for the newlyenhanced organ.
I first heard him play the mas-sive instrument when he was fine-tuning it several days before theinaugural concert and indeed itdoes produce a magnificentsound that reaches every cornerof the sanctuary.
The reason for this powerfulmusic, not to mention Tall’sexpertise, is due to the 180 digitalranks he and his techniciansinterfaced with the original pipeorgan’s ranks, or sets of pipes,bringing the total to 223.
Since the reconfiguration,which cost $250,000, it has beenplayed regularly during worshipservices by Meg Wise, the residentorganist. The church also offersoccasional mid-week concertsfeaturing local artists.
Tall’s upcoming performance istitled “The Modern Organ in Con-cert.” He plans to perform musicby classical composers —Beethoven and Vivaldi, for exam-ple — as well as more contempo-rary figures such as SigfridKarg-Elert, whose “Soul of theLake” the organist recorded for hislatest album, “Masterpieces.”
Admission to the concert is free,but a light lunch may be pur-chased for $6 and will be availableprior to the start of the program.
‘All Shook Up’ rocks and rolls
Camille Gavin’s “Arts Alive!”column appears on Thursday. Write to her
‘Sing Down the Moon:Appalachian WonderTales’When: 7 p.m. Friday, and 2
and 7 p.m. Saturday
Where: NOR Veterans Hall,
400 Norris Road
Admission: $7
Information: 392-2000
‘All Shook Up’When: Doors open 6 p.m.,
show at 7:30 p.m., Friday and
Saturday; doors open 12:30
p.m., show at 2 p.m. Sunday
Where: Stars Theatre
Restaurant, 1931 Chester Ave.
Admission: $45 to $55;
show-only tickets, $35
Information: 325-6100
‘Alice in Wonderland’ When: 7 p.m. Friday and
Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
Where: Bakersfield
Community Theatre, 2400 S.
Chester Ave.
Admission: $12; $10 children
Information: 831- 8114
‘The Modern Organ inConcert’When: 12:30 p.m.
Wednesday
Where: First Presbyterian
Church, 1705 17th St.
Admission: Free
Information: 325-9419
GO & DOTea parties precede‘Alice in Wonderland’
Coming FridayRead Camille’s review of
“Stage Door,” now playing at
The Empty Space.
PHOTO COURTESY OF VICKIE STRICKLIN
From left, Brett Walker, Kyle Gaines and Ashlee Lang appear in “Sing Down the Moon: Appalachian Won-der Tales,” the NOR Junior Theatre production running this weekend at the NOR Veterans Hall.
Thursday, May 12, 2011 The Bakersfield Californian 25
Eye Street
BY ASHLEY FISCHERContributing writer
As we learned from Chuck Wall’snationally recognized RandomActs of Kindness campaign, a
simple smile and a “thank you” can goa long way. Now Wall has taken hisideas about kindness and applied themto an issue affecting thousands of kidsand teens across the nation: bullying.
Wall’s most recent endeavor to pro-mote kindness takes to the stage in theform of an original play, “The Visitors.”The play, which has been brought tolife by East High School’s AdvancedDrama Class and its instructor, JennaOdlin, will be running for four perform-ances at the Spotlight Theatre startingFriday.
In a time when teens are resorting tosuicide as a means to escape bullying,Wall’s timing couldn’t be better.
“I believe this can be a very valuableplay for a high-schooler. I want thatbully to be in audience, so they can seewhat he or she may look like,” said Wall.“I also believe that bullying is a choice.It’s not genetic. It’s something youadopt or learn, and it’s something thatcan change.”
The cast of “The Visitors” consists of25 East High School drama students.For the performances, the students willbe running the entire production,including lights and sound, with littleto no assistance from the crew at theSpotlight. This will be the first time inOdlin’s 11 years with East that the highschool’s drama program will performone of its productions at a communitytheater.
“We were really lucky that membersfrom the Spotlight Theatre came andwatched when we did one of our per-formances of the play at school,” shesaid. “They felt like it was an importantpiece that the community needed tosee, since the topic is so pressing. Theyasked us to partner with them and gaveus a number of different options forwhen we could perform.
“It’s an honor that this communitytheater reached out to us. We’re reallygrateful to them, especially since thisplay deals with such an importantissue, and this allows us to showcasewhat we do.”
While East’s production consists ofwhat Odlin described as a “largeensemble cast,” the play largelyrevolves around the exploits of oneobnoxious student, Evan Cruz. Cruz,who comes from a troubled back-ground, shows little to no respect fornot only his peers, but also his teachers
and his family.As the play progresses, Cruz encoun-
ters four different visitors, each ofwhom represent and instruct Cruzabout the importance of one of the fourtenets of Wall’s definition of “kindness”:compassion, humility, dignity andrespect. The play then ends on a hope-ful note, with Cruz finally recognizinghis behavior has affected those aroundhim in a negative way, and with himactively attempting to atone for whathe’s done, and change himself for thebetter.
Wall was initially unsure how totranslate his ideas for “The Visitors” tothe stage, but after partnering withlocal playwright James Mongold, all thepieces began to fall into place.
“I’d been thinking about this conceptfor a couple of years, but I didn’t reallyknow how to go about putting it into aplay,” Wall said. “I had been thinkingabout this kindness thing quite a bit,but it took until maybe a year, year anda half ago that it got to the point ofmaking this play into a reality.
“It took me quite awhile to findJames. Many of the other writers Italked to didn’t have a clear concept ofwhat I was trying to do, or wanted toinsert their own philosophies into it.James finally said he’d do it. He had areally nice feel how to take an idea andcreate a dialogue out of it, and that’swhat he did. He really did a great job.”
Wall also intentionally wanted theplot to remain simple so that the stu-dent performers could easily modifythe storyline to make it more relevantto themselves and to their audience —on the condition that they remain true
to the overall spirit of the play. Which isprecisely what the students at EastHigh did.
“Dr. Wall was really ‘kind’ to let usrevamp the script a little bit,” Odlin saidwith a laugh. “Last year, the advanceddrama students were given a copy ofthe script. I asked them to look at thedifferent scenes in the play and revampeach scene to make it more appropri-ate for audiences like them. The stu-dents really felt the language needed tobe much more raw, much more alarm-ing, because that’s what they’re used tohearing when they walk through thehalls.”
Tyler Andrews, 16, who plays EvanCruz, called the experience of mount-ing the play an eye-opener.
“There’s definitely a problem withbullying at our school,” he said. “Andbeing in this really opened my mindand opened my eyes to how bullyingcan affect people. It’s one of those expe-riences where, say, if you had neverbeen bullied in your life, because youwere the bully, and then one day, youcaused someone to commit suicide —that would completely change how youlive your whole life.
“Basically, this play taught me howmuch being kind to everyone — justhow important it is. Because those littlethings, like saying ‘hello,’ or ‘I love you’— it can really change someone’swhole day.”
East isn’t the first high school to per-form “The Visitors.” Kern Valley HighSchool presented the play last year.
“We would really like to see this playperformed by other Kern County highschools,” Wall said. “As soon as we’vehad maybe two more local highschools do this, we want to make itavailable to schools across the coun-try.”
Even though “The Visitors” dealswith an issue that can seem over-whelming, Andrews, like the characterhe portrays, remains hopeful.
“More people need to see this play.All of us have the potential to be bullies,but all of us also have the potential tospread kindness.”
‘The Visitors’When: 6 p.m. Friday and
Saturday; also May 27 and 28
Where: Spotlight Theatre, 1622
19th St.
Admission: $7
Information: 634-0692 or
thespotlighttheatre.com.
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“All of us have the potential to be bullies, but all of us also have the potential to spread kindness.”
— East High student Tyler Andrew, who stars in “The Visitors”
CALIFORNIAN FILE
Chuck Wall’s most recent endeavorto promote kindness takes to thestage in the form of an original play,“The Visitors.”
Bully pulpit: Playtackles teen cruelty
26 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
Eye Street
I’ve said more than once thatstand-up comedy is slowlyovertaking the city’s entertain-
ment scene. Every week, new promoters and
clubs are hosting their own come-dy night or featuring a mix oflocals and out-of-town comics.Although some are better organ-ized than others, it doesn’t takemuch to screw up a comedy showwhen the only important piece ofequipment needed is one mic. Butif the lineup ends up bombingbefore the headliner even stepsonstage, your audience will mostlikely die of boredom instead oflaughter.
That shouldn’t be the case dur-ing the “Simply Comedy” eventhappening this evening at Fishlips,featuring funnymen Chase Brock-ett, Jorge Mata, Jeff Bilodeau, JoeAlaniz and headliner Joe Charles.
Alaniz has been a familiar faceat Bakotopia Unplugged Open MicNight for months, often showingup with just a few scribbled slips ofpaper resembling a band set list.Testing out new material in frontof an often brutally honest crowd,he follows a tradition of famouscomedians who don’t wait foropening night to test the waters.
“The way it works is if someonetells me something’s funny after Iwalk offstage, it stays. Some of thejokes I do at the open mic night, Iwon’t do other places,” said Alaniz,whose been actively working his
comedic mojo forthe past three
years. “Youhave torun it atleast four
to fivetimes tokeep it or
throw it
out.”Alaniz also said that although he
does write material primarily for hisown act, he will make pitches toother comedians. He may not yet beat the level of Mr. Paul Mooney, whobecame known for supplying thelate Richard Pryor with materialback in the day, but he’s trying.
“It’s something that we do local-ly to support each other. If some-thing doesn’t work for me, I mightpass it on to another comedian.We also have a series of tests forjokes: First you try it on somecomics and people you know, thenyou take it to an open-mic crowd,then finally to the people who arepaying to see you.”
Another way Alaniz says localcomedians have stayed active is bybecoming promoters themselves.
“You never wanna be known asboth a promoter and comedian.You should focus on one to begood. But in order to get better,you have to do shows. I’ve been onshows where it’s been completelyblue with guys cursing up a storm,and I don’t feel comfortable asso-ciating myself with them. This waywe eliminate stressing about it.”
Alaniz doesn’t count out all off-color jokes — he said he canappreciate some potty-mouthedlaughs on occasion.
“The more offensive you get,and the bigger names you canwrangle in, it can sometimes boostyour name if the joke hits big. Butthat’s hard to do. It’s all about per-sonal preferences, really.”
One of Alaniz’s tactics is keepingmaterial timely, as in a bit he’s writ-ten about Facebook and historicalfigures. We don’t want to spoil thejoke, but if you can imagine whatAnne Frank might’ve been postingon her wall while hiding from theNazis, or what Osama Bin Laden’slast words were, Alaniz has a hilari-ous status update for all of them. Inthe case audiences don’t pay atten-tion to current events or pass histo-ry class, Alaniz said he has a plan tofix that.
“All my audiences will have tohave a degree to attend futureshows.”
Tonight’s show starts at 8 p.m.Admission is $5. Fishlips is locatedat 1517 18th St. Call 324-2557.
No Doubt tribute to followfunnymen at Fishlips
It’s not easy paying tribute togreatness.
Many locals have caught greattouring tribute bands like LedZepagain (a tribute to Led Zep-pelin), Bon-Fire (AC/DC) andAtomic Punks (Van Halen), buthave also been stuck watchingsnoozers like Mommie’s LittleMonsters (a tribute to Social Dis-tortion).
If you’re going to start a tributeband, at least try sounding andacting like the artists you’re por-traying. I once saw a Rage Againstthe Machine tribute band with asinger who didn’t even remotelyresemble singer Zach De La Rochaor sound like him. Even worse, theSacramento band Arden ParkRoots opened up for themselves,magically reappearing after a fewbeers as The Livin’s Easy — a trib-ute to Sublime — not as a threepiece, but as a four piece. I’ve seenso many bad tribute bands rollthrough town that I’m contem-plating a boycott. Next thing youknow we’ll be seeing tributes toChumbawumba and Sugar Ray.Spare us, please?
Take a lesson from the real deal,like No Duh, the No Doubt tributeband appearing tonight at Fishlipsfollowing the Simply Comedyshow. Having caught the real NoDoubt numerous times going all
the way back to 1989, I expected tohate this tribute when I first sawthem open for The Untouchablesin Hollywood. Thankfully, thisSoCal-based quartet does a realis-tic job imitating the real Gwen,Tony, Adrian and Tom onstage.Lead vocalist Heather Lounsburyhas the voice, blonde locks, outfitsand moves that have garneredthem approval from No Doubt, ascan be seen on the band’s officialwebsite, noduh.net. This is theband’s third visit to Bakersfieldsince March. Definitely worthchecking out. The band hits theFishlips stage tonight at 9:30 p.m.Admission is $10.
Matt’s pickLa Grange Tribute to ZZ Top
at The Fox Theater, 2001 H St., 6p.m. Saturday. $10 to $15. 324-1369.
It must be tribute week in Bako.During the height of MTV’s origi-nal music video era, there was noescaping the bearded brothers ofTexas with their hits “Gimme AllYour Lovin’” and “Sharp DressedMan.” Most youngsters might betoo young to remember them, butyour parents will. This tributeband does a mighty fine job of re-creating the original ZZ Top expe-rience, complete with crazy outfitsand of course the signature RipVan Winkle-style faux beard. Whileyou may notice they’re a four-piece, the best way to enjoy theiract is to surrender to the moment.The show coincides with the 50thanniversary of Bako’s El CaminoClub, which will host a free customcar show outside the Fox beforethe show.
A ‘Simply’ good night at FishlipsThe Lowdown with Matt Munoz
Comedy, cover banda hot ticket tonight
Bakotopia UnpluggedOpen Mic Night With host Matt Munoz
When: 8 to 11 p.m.
Wednesdays. Signups start at
7:30 p.m.
Where: Fishlips, 1517 18th St.
Information: 324-2557 or
visit the Facebook page for
updates.
Matt Munoz is editor of Bakotopia.com, a sister website of
The Californian that devotes itself to promoting Bakersfield’s art
scene. Matt’s column appears every Thursday in Eye Street.
PHOTO COURTESY OF EMILY BECERRA
Joe Alaniz is one of the comediansperforming at Fishlips tonight.
PHOTO COURTESY OF NO DUH
No Doubt tribute band No Duh makes its return to Fishlips tonight.
Thursday, May 12, 2011 The Bakersfield Californian 27
Eye Street
Adrian Nevarez, of local Latinrock band Velorio, was minding hisbusiness Monday at the Red Robinin Valley Plaza, where he works,when who walks by but Foo Fight-ers frontman Dave Grohl, Bakers-field’s most famous guest of thelast week or so. Adrian writes:
“He just happened to be walkingby, leaving the mall. He was byhimself. He had his sunglasses off,then he put them on. I kept look-ing at him, ‘That’s Dave Grohl!’ Idropped what I was doing. I ran
over and asked him what he wasdoing and thanked him for hismusic and for being such an inspi-ration. He said Foo Fighters arepracticing here at the Rabobankand getting ready for the worldtour. He was a really chill dude. Ithink he was more caught offguard that I pointed him out. I did-n’t think I’d ever get this chanceagain so I had to do something. Iasked him if I could take a photoand he said, ‘Sure,’ then he walkedright over.”
Local musician capturesencounter with rock star
The distinct aroma of seasoned, grilledmeat cooking over an open flame is one of themany identifiers that spring is officially in theair. Couple that with fair weather, great music,cold drinks and familiar faces, and you havethe perfect recipe for the annual CSUB Athlet-ics Spring Barbecue.
The 39th annual installment takes placethis evening starting at 5:30 p.m. at the IcardoCenter on the CSUB campus.
In addition to Harris Ranch steaks — newthis year — and teriyaki chicken, guests willbe treated to the usual great fixings includingbreadsticks from the Olive Garden, salad fromthe Garden Spot, Mexicali salsa, Marie Callen-der’s pies and Foster Farms Dairy ice cream.Visitors can wash it all down with a Rock StarEnergy drink, which will be giving out sam-ples of their always-popular concoctions.
With a full belly, you’ll be primed to partakein the evening’s festivities including dancingto the sounds of Thee Majestics and raffledrawings every half hour starting at 7 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased at the door for$30. All proceeds benefit the CSUB student-athlete scholarship fund.
For more information, call 654-3473. — Cal State Bakersfield news release
In the mood forbarbecue? CSUBthe place to be
Mamma mia! The ItalianHeritage Dante Associationwill host a family-style ItalianPicnic on Sunday in the gar-dens at the Italian HeritageHall.
Parking and admission isfree, with food starting at $5.And what a selection: Eventchefs will prepare deep-pitstyle barbecue to serve withthe traditional pasta, saladand roll. Adult plates will gofor $12, child plates $5 andpasta-only plates for $6. Other
dining options will include adelicious Roman-style sand-wich topped with a savory redmeat sauce for $5. To wet yourwhistle, there will be a varietyof soft drinks, wine, beer andvarious mixed drinks as well.
The authentic and deliziosoItalian desserts — prepared athome by club members —promise to include such won-derful creations as mascar-pone cupcakes, Siciliancannoli, Sicilian fig cookies,anise biscotti, biscotti di Regi-na, almond cookies, variouscakes, pies, brownies andcookie bars.
The master of ceremonies
will be association boardmember Ken Bausano. Bau-sano also leads a number ofjazz ensembles, including sev-eral big bands, so expect sometop-notch music. Past picnicshave brought out the enter-tainer in some attendees,including cantante Luigi ViaCava, who has gifted listenerswith his interpretations of sev-eral Italian songs.
There will be a raffle (tickets$1) with several gift basketsand artwork. For children,there will be a bounce houseas well as various games. Foradults, teams will be enrolledto participate in the bocce
tournament, a cheerful andexciting event that promises toturn up a couple of superbwinning teams. First- and sec-ond-place prizes will beawarded. The Italian DanteHeritage Association extendsthe invitation to all its mem-bers and the entire communi-ty to join in a fun day. — Italian Heritage Dante
Association
A lotsa pasta for just $6
39th annual CSUB Spring BarbecueWhen: 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. today
Where: CSUB, Icardo Center, 9001
Stockdale Highway
Admission: $30
Information: gorunners.com or 654-3473
Italian PicnicWhen: Noon to 6 p.m.
Sunday
Where: Italian Heritage
Hall, 4415 Wilson Road
Admission: Free; food $5
to $12
Information: 831-0867
Register at www.kernarts.org or call 324-9000
5K Ramble to raise fund for the arts
Live Music, Dance, Arts, Contests
Opening Ceremony and Finish Line Celebration in
Bakersfield Central Park at 21st and R Streets.
$10 registration (children under 10 free).
PHOTO COURTESY OF ADRIAN NEVAREZ
Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and Adrian Nevarez,sales team member at Red Robin and percussionistfor local Latin rock band Velorio.
Picnic also featuresdeep pit and desserts
28 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
Eye Street
BY ASHLEY FISCHERContributing writer
Cesar Chavez once said, “If you reallywant to make a friend, go to some-one’s house and eat with him ... the
people who give you their food give youtheir heart.”
On Saturday, the National Chavez Center,a subsidiary of the Cesar E. Chavez Founda-tion, invites you and your friends to jointhem for an afternoon of eating (and drink-ing) at their second annual Keene Wine andCheese Festival. Tickets are $30, and all pro-ceeds benefit the National Chavez Center.
Nestled among the mountains ofTehachapi just 30 minutes east of Bakers-
field, the beautiful gardens and Mission-style buildings of the Chavez Center make itan ideal setting for an afternoon getaway offood, wine and fun.
The festival takes place on the pictur-esque patio of the Villa La Paz Conferenceand Educational Center, so guests can strollalong and admire the scenery while pleas-ing their palates with five delicious foodand wine pairings.
Although only in its second year, manyelements have been added to this year’s fes-tival, and the center’s marketing director,Erin Castillo, is excited about the changes.
“It’s completely different than last year,”
Wine, cheese — and a little history
BY ASHLEY FISCHERContributing writer
If you’re yearning for fine wines andauthentic Italian cuisine but can’t quiteafford the airfare to Italy, the Bakersfield
East Rotary Foundation’s benefit banquet,Vino Amore, could well provide one bellanote.
The dinner, which takes place Saturdayin Monsignor Leddy Hall at Garces Memor-ial High School, will generate funds to bedonated to the Valley Fever Americas Foun-dation, the Ronald McDonald House ofBakersfield and the East Bakersfield RotaryFoundation. Tickets are $75 per person, or$400 for a table of six.
Vino Amore is the Rotary Foundation’srevamped and renamed version of thegroup’s annual fundraising benefit, former-ly known as the Pasta di Festa. Themakeover was inspired by longtime Rotarymember, chef and restaurant owner TerryMaxwell’s popular Wine Lover dinners, heldeach month at his downtown restaurant,T.L. Maxwell’s Restaurant and Bar.
While the Pasta di Festa will be missed,Bob Parker, East Bakersfield Rotary Clubtreasurer and co-chairman of the fundrais-er, is confident Vino Amore will provideguests with an exciting evening with morethan just a hint of elegant, Italian flavor.
“It’s gonna be a lot of fun,” says Parker.“There’ll be great food, great wine, and thisyear we have a decoration committee thatis going way over the top. People are goingto feel like they’re walking into an Italianpiazza when they come in.”
The dinner will consist of five courses,including three wine pairings, and eachcourse will be presented by Maxwell him-self.
However, the event is not to be confusedwith an ordinary “winemaker” dinner. Thisis a Maxwell’s Wine Lover dinner, and,according to Maxwell, there’s a big differ-ence between the two.
“Winemaker dinners are more about thewine or the chef,” he said. “Our Wine Lover
dinners focus more on how food and theright wine go together. It’s not about justabout one or the other. It’s about the realdining experience of having great food withthe right wine. When you have a great pair-ing, the food tastes better, and the winetastes better.”
But don’t expect to find a full menu sit-ting on the table at this event. Each courseand the wine served with it is a closely keptsecret that will be revealed only whenMaxwell presents each course. “That’s partof the fun of it,” explained Parker.
But Maxwell does offer a hint about thefood and a tantalizing incentive.
“Foodwise, the courses are going to be asauthentic Italian as they can get, yet I’ll stillbe putting my own signature on everydish,” said Maxwell. “When I introduce thedifferent courses, I try to make a story out ofit, and try and make it entertaining foreveryone. It will be a very lively atmos-phere, and we’ve got some special thingsplanned. I’d tell you what they were, butthen they wouldn’t be surprises, wouldthey?”
In addition to the dinner, Vino Amore willfeature a silent auction with nearly 50 itemsup for bid, including: tickets for four toattend two Dodgers baseball games; a Mer-le Haggard signature guitar; and golf andlunch for two at Seven Oaks Country Club.Raffle tickets for a $10,000 dream vacationwill also be available for $100 each.
There are only 300 tickets available forthis event, so be sure to purchase themsoon if you would like to be a part of thisenchanted Italian evening. No-host cock-tails begin at 5 p.m. and dinner starts at 6.
Tickets can be purchased by visiting theVino Amore website, vinoamore.info, or call327-0030.
Fundraiser event aims for best dinner pairings
It’s all about thefood and the wine
Vino AmoreWhen: 5 to 11 p.m. Saturday
Where: Garces High School, Monsignor
Leddy Hall, 2800 Loma Linda Drive
Cost: $75 per person; $400 table of six
Information: vinoamore.info or 327-
0030
All proceeds benefit the Society for Disabled Children All proceeds benefit the Society for Disabled Children
Family Time 12:00pm – 3:00pm Family Time 12:00pm – 3:00pmBring your friends and family for a Bring your friends and family for a
swashbuckling good time swashbuckling good timeTickets $7.00 each, children under 5 free Tickets $7.00 each, children under 5 free
Evening Hours 6:00pm – 9:00pm Evening Hours 6:00pm – 9:00pmTickets $50.00 per person Tickets $50.00 per person
Dinner, dancing, entertainment and silent auction Dinner, dancing, entertainment and silent auctionCatering by Mossman’s Catering by Mossman’s
Tickets Available at the Society for Disabled Children Tickets Available at the Society for Disabled Children
Featuring the Featuring theKern County Pirates Kern County Pirates
Society for Disabled Children Society for Disabled Children1819 Brundage Lane, Bakersfield, CA 93304 • 661.322.5595 1819 Brundage Lane, Bakersfield, CA 93304 • 661.322.5595
Evelyn Bugarin
“I’m getting ready for college, graduating... You don’t want to mess it up.” Evelyn Bugarin, South High
Sponsored by
Please see PAGE 29
Thursday, May 12, 2011 The Bakersfield Californian 29
Eye Streetsays Castillo. “This year, we’re working withoutside wineries, and one of them is anorganic winery, so that’s new as well. We’llalso have representatives from theTehachapi Wine and Cheese Cellar and Cel-lar Masters from the wineries offering wineeducation.”
Experts from the various wineries willhold seminars throughout the day, cover-ing a variety of subjects, including: how tocreate wine and food pairings, the differ-ences between organic and nonorganicwinemaking, and Black Eagle Wines, theofficial label of United Farm Workers, willeven be offering lessons on how to makeyour own sangria.
In addition to the seminars, there will bea raffle, vendor booths, and Abel Sanchezand his band will provide their signaturestyle of Latin rock and funk music.
Castillo hopes that, with a much largerevent this year, to increase awareness with-in the community about the Chavez Centerand the educational programs it provides.
“I’m really hoping to have a much largeraudience this year,” says Castillo. “We’rereally branching out, and want to pull in alot of people in Bakersfield, especially peo-ple who have never been here.”
The Chavez Center, which opened in2004, is dedicated to memorializing andeducating visitors about the life and work ofthe union leader.
The center welcomes nearly 1,000 visi-tors a month and offers educational toursand other programs to visiting schools fromthroughout the West.
The Chavez Center consists of three mainareas: the Visitor’s Center, the recently com-
pleted Villa La Paz Conference and Educa-tion Center, and the Memorial Gardens.
The Visitor’s Center is built around thevery building where Chavez lived andworked from 1971 to 1993. Here, guests canvisit Chavez’s original office or view one ofthe three different photo exhibits com-memorating Chavez’s life and work.
Chavez’s humble gravesite can be foundwithin the Memorial Gardens, flanked byplantings of the Cesar Chavez rose, a deepred rose that blooms from April to October.Also found just north of the Memorial Gar-dens is the “Garden of the Southwest,”which contains a variety of plants, succu-lents, cactus, trees and grasses native to thesouthwestern United States. Both theMemorial Gardens and the Visitor’s Centerwill be open for guests to enjoy during theWine and Cheese Festival.
Tickets can be purchased online throughthe Cesar E. Chavez Foundation’s officialwebsite, chavezfoundation.org, or by call-ing 823-6271.
Tickets purchased by Friday come with afree souvenir wine glass. Each ticketincludes five wine and food pairings. Addi-tional wine tastings can be purchased fortwo dollars per tasting.
Wine & Cheese FestivalWhen: Noon to 5 p.m. Saturday
Where: National Chavez Center, 29700
Woodford-Tehachapi Road, Keene
Admission: $30
Information: 823-6271 or
chavezfoundation.org
Thursday, May 26Tickets $20 to $50
Paul RodriguezFor concert information go to tachipalace.com or call 1-866-4palace
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 28
30 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
Bike Bakersfield’s first Bike Festival rollsinto Mill Creek park this Saturday and Sun-day, two days of “bikes, bikes and morebikes.”
Organizers invite the public to bring theirfavorite two-wheelers and join the festivitieswhile learning about the benefits of alterna-tive transportation.
“Part of the whole festival is to make peo-ple aware of all the fun things they can do ontheir bike,” said Bike Bakersfield ExecutiveDirector Tina Chapa. “It’s not just for ridingaround town. You can get pretty creative withwhat you’ve got.”
There will be plenty of food and arts andcrafts vendors, in addition to live musiccourtesy of Walk for the Arts, which is provid-ing entertainment.
“You’re gonna find something to do. We’rereally encouraging everyone to come out.”
Saturday’s eclectic schedule begins at 10a.m. with a bike rodeo, followed by bike polo,bike jousting, a big BMX competition at thepark, open sprint competitions and more. Ifsome of these event names conjure upimages of bronco busting and knights inshining armor, you’re partly correct.
“We have guys jumping ramps in BMX, sowhy not try jousting?,” said Chapa of howorganizers are getting a little medieval. “Thejousting pole is made out of plastic PVC pip-ing. There’s a boxing glove attached to thefront of the pole, with more soft materialaround the glove. The people competing willhave a helmet and a face mask. The bikerodeo is a great way to help kids learn abouttraffic safety.”
If sport cycling isn’t your thing, there aremore conservative events to participate inthroughout the day including the Park toPark ride designed to help riders becomeaccustomed to using city streets to getaround, rather than just off-road bike paths.Led by Team Go Ride, a new local all-levelcycling organization, riders will have twoopportunities beginning at 8 a.m.
“They’ll be leading a ride early morningfrom Mill Creek to Hart Park and back, then ashorter ride from Mill Creek to Beach Parkand back. A lot of people only ride on thepath and not on road, because they mightget nervous. Riding with a big group will helpthem get used to it.”
On Sunday, the festivities continue with afarmers market, bike swap meet, and the 6thannual Bike Bakersfield Criterium race thatwill take place circling the Mill Creekgrounds and extend to adjoining streets.
“It’s like a NASCAR race on bikes,” saidChapa. “You go around this set of streetblocks for a certain amount of time, any-where from 45 to 75 minutes.”
First Bike Festival wheels into Mill Creek Park
Bike Bakersfield Bike FestivalWhen: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday; 7
a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday
Where: Mill Creek Park, 21st and R
streets; 19th and 21st between R and V
streets will be closed to auto traffic
during event.
Admission: Free. BMX entry fee: $5.
Bike Polo: $15 for team of three.
Criterium race: $15 to 25.
Information: 321-9247 or
bikebakersfield.org
• Improve Flexibility • Relieve Stress • Create A Strong & Lean Body • Develop A Strong Core
Pilates Will GivePilates Will Give Pilates Will Give You A Beach BodyYou A Beach Body You A Beach Body
Local guitar slingers looking for a shotat being named Guitar Center’s 2011 Kingof the Blues should make plans to strumover to the store’s Ming Avenue locationtonight.
The annual nationwide blues guitarcompetition, which kicked off last lastweek, heads into its second of threeweekly preliminary area rounds thisevening. The public is invited to sign upand participate or show up to supporttheir favorite.
“We get a pretty lively crowd in hereduring this particular event,” said GaryRink, manager of Guitar Center’s guitardepartment. “Last week we were a littlelight on attendance, but it will definitelypick up once the word spreads.”
According to the official Guitar Centerwebsite, the competition works like this:
You must be at least 16 to enter andmay sign up only at your local GuitarCenter. Each round is limited to 10 par-ticipants. Participants can then go theofficial competition Web page at guitar-center.com/kingoftheblues to downloadone of the 30 free music that will doubleas your backing tracks when you facelocal judges Ben Thomas, Denny Busseyand Mark Andrews. You will get five min-utes to set up and will perform to any oneof the official backing tracks of yourchoice. All tracks will be available onsiteduring each round.
Contestants may bring and use anythree-, four- six, seven- or 12-stringacoustic or electric guitar, cigar box gui-tar, lap steel or pedal steel guitar, anyaudio pedal effects that can be set up infive minutes, which will be plugged into aselection of amplifiers provided by thestore. In the event of a tie, you will berequired to play an additional two min-utes with no backing track.
The top two winners from each roundwill then return to the Bakersfield finalson May 26, where one finalist will be cho-sen to continue to the Southern Califor-nia district finals, and possibly theregional and grand finals at House ofBlues in Hollywood. Prizes are awardedfor each winner, with a top grand prize of$25,000.
Last week’s local semifinalists wereaxmen Matt Linder and Stephen Lengalof Bakersfield.
Bakersfield Guitar Center sales manag-er Drew Martin values the communityaspects of the event.
“It’s really huge. It’s a place where allthe local blues guys come and hang out.It’s kind of inspiring. Nice little grassrootsevent that helps musicians. We’ve hadbands find new guitarists for their grouphere, too. Every week someone can showup and sign up if there’s room.”
The last semifinal round will be heldon May 19. For more information oncomplete rules and requirements, visitGuitar Center on Ming Avenue.
Blues catssquare off inguitar battle
2011 Guitar Center King of theBlues semi-finals round 2When: 6 tonight
Where: Guitar Center, 3428 Ming
Ave.
Admission: Free
Information: 396-3838 or
guitarcenter.com/kingoftheblues
Thursday, May 12, 2011 The Bakersfield Californian 31
32 The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, May 12, 2011
Eye StreetGO&DO
Today39th annual CSUB Spring BBQ,see story on Page 27.
John Berry, 7 p.m., Buck Owens’
Crystal Palace, 2800 Buck Owens
Blvd. $18.50 to $28.50. vallitix.com
or call 322-5200.
“Simply Comedy,” with Billy
Bonnell and Chase Brockett, Jorge
Mata, Jeff Bilodeau, 8 to 9:30 p.m.
Fishlips, 1517 18th St. $5. 324-
2557.
No Duh, tribute to No Doubt, 9:30
p.m., Fishlips Bar & Grill, 1517 18th
St. $10 plus fee. vallitix.com or
322-5200.
Cooking Class, with chef Meir
Brown, 6 to 9 p.m., Cafe Med,
4809 Stockdale Highway. $50.
834-4433.
CSUB 60 Plus Club, with Wendy
Wayne discussing “Every
Continent-Every Ocean,” 2 p.m.,
CSUB, Runner Cafe, 9001 Stockdale
Highway. Free. 654-3211.
Kern Leadership AllianceBreakfast, with Nada Yorke
discussing domestic violence, 7 to
8 a.m., The Petroleum Club, 5060
California Ave. $15. 323-8002.
Friday10th annual HumanitarianAwards Banquet, cocktails at 6
p.m., followed by dinner, program
and dancing, 8 p.m., Seven Oaks
Country Club, 2000 Grand Lakes
Ave. $60. 336-5236, ext. 160.
Sixth annual Driller FootballHall of Fame Banquet, 6 p.m.,
Marriott Hotel at the Convention
Center, 801 Truxtun Ave. $125; can
be purchased at BHS student
activities building or Glinn &
Giordano Physical Therapy. 393-
4027.
Friday the 13th Monster Ball,with The J Bombs, hot rods,
vendors, scary drink specials,
come dressed as your favorite
horror character, 9 p.m., B. Ryders,
7401 White Lane. $5. 397-7304.
Friday the 13th Night GhostTour, lantern light tour at 8:30
p.m., Silver City Ghost Town, 3829
Lake Isabella Boulevard, Bodfish.
$12. TChildren welcome but must
be accompanied by an adult. 760-
379-5146.
NOR Movie in the Park“Tangled,” see story on Page 23.
Send a Kid to Camp Luncheon,benefits Bakersfield Firefighters
