Got Courage?
Sign up for a Monterey Museum of Art open mic event – Moments of Courage – that accompanies the current exhibit “Courage Within: Women Without Shelter” (see story, p. 20). MMA encourages open dialogue and freedom of expression with five-minute performance slots. “We invite participants to share stories of resilience through poetry, story, or song,” the organizers write. MMA’s open mic night is free and open to all participants and spectators, with these modest guidelines: that “all individuals interacting with our programming be respectful and refrain from misinformation or comments that are inappropriate or derogatory in nature.” If you’d like to perform you can register in advance online at bit.ly/MMAOpenMic. When registering, one is asked about themselves and the type of performance they want to present (spoken word, poetry, story, music, comedy). You can also attend just as an audience member to take it all in. [AP]
6pm Friday, Feb. 11. Captain+Stoker, 398 E. Franklin St., Monterey. 372-5477, education@montereyart.org, montereyart.org.
Going Celtic
Live music is back at St. Mary’s-By-The-Sea, with a stellar Celtic duo Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas. The musical partnership between Fraser, “the Michael Jordan of Scottish fiddling,” and Californian cellist Haas spans the full spectrum between intimate chamber music and ecstatic dance energy. Fraser has a career spanning over 30 years, with a long list of awards, accolades, radio and television credits, and feature performances on top movie soundtracks. In 2011, he was inducted into the Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame. Haas, a graduate of the Juilliard School of Music, has performed and recorded all over the world. [AP]
7pm Saturday, Feb. 12. St. Mary’s-By-The-Sea, 146 12th St., Pacific Grove. Advance tickets: $30/adults, $15/children; door price is $35/adults, $20/children. Ticket holders must be fully vaccinated and have cards available; masks are required. alasdairandnatalie.com, celticsociety.org.
Veg Heads
This monthly pop-up, now going on its third month, is designed a manifestation of the Urban Arts Collaborative’s socially conscious vision – that includes presenting the work of local artists (available for sale) and different art activities (this month, it’s making bags with designs from UAC artists), and also creating a gathering space for the community. Naturally, that means food vendors – but in this case, all vegan food vendors. Event coordinator JC Gonzalez says Salinas was past due for a vegan gathering, inviting both vegans and non-vegans alike to try plant-based foods. “The idea of engaging people in vegan food and art is really good for Salinas,” he says. This month’s pop-up features vegan dogs by Cali Dawg, a Venezuelan menu by Areperia 831 and burritos and tacos by La Charra Vegana. “The Urban Arts Collaborative has a strong belief that to be in harmony, it requires us to be in harmony with nature, with animals and with everybody else,” Gonzalez says. To that end, art, community and cruelty-free food converge. [SR]
Noon-6pm Sunday, Feb. 13. Urban Arts Collaborative, 21 Soledad St., Suite C, Salinas. Free to attend; food for sale. 512-2721, urbanartsco.org.
A Jazzy Tea party
Forget a fancy dinner – restaurants tend to be crowded and tense places on Valentine’s Day anyway. Here’s a sweet Valentine’s weekend celebration plan that includes live jazz, local art and delicious scones. What’s the venue for such a mashup, you ask? The Pacific Grove Art Center is teaming up with Palenke Jazz and Chef Karen Anne Murray of Eddison & Melrose to make it all happen. Current exhibits at the art center include one on historical photos of Monterey County, plus portraits by Romanoos and dramatic photos of the sea by Brian Spiegel. Tea time treats will include scones, as previously and importantly mentioned, plus Carousel Candies’ chocolates and a special love-themed tea. And as a cherry on top, a portion of the proceeds of the event will go to support Palenke Arts. Sweet indeed. [TCL]
1-2:30pm Sunday, Feb. 13. Pacific Grove Art Center, 568 Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove. $35/couple, $20/individual. Proof of vaccination required. 601-4851, pgartcenter.org.
Blue Seas, Green Seas, Changing Seas
The colorful and playful sea life murals by famed artist Ray Troll that crown the abandoned National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration facility on Point Pinos in Pacific Grove precisely reflect the intersection of art and science that locals are working to bring to life there on the site. They dream of transforming the federal building into a national destination for climate and ocean studies called the Center for Ocean, Art, Science and Technology, or COAST. The Friends of Hopkins Marine Station group is bringing together Troll and two oceanographers who are working to save and transform the building – Chuck Greene and Ken Parker, also an internationally recognized fine art photographer – for a webinar called “COAST: The Art and Science of Blue Seas, Green Seas, Changing Seas.” Troll will describe how he created the whimsical murals and how they connect to COAST’s mission. [PM]
7pm Tuesday, Feb. 15. On Zoom; register in advance to receive an individualized link. Free. bit.ly/COASTwebinar.
Don’t Judge A Book By Its Cover
Maybe a friend believes you and some other person would make a perfect couple. The friend gives you a vague reason why – you both dig Kenny G, you both are obnoxious when drunk, whatever. You meet and discover that two obnoxious drunks staggering to elevator jazz is not actually a good look. The point is, blind dates don’t always work out. But the Monterey Public Library wants you to take another shot at love, this time with a book. They’ve wrapped up books so you can’t judge them by their covers and provided a brief description (see above for how that will help). For Blind Date with a Book you check out one of the books, take it home, undre… unwrap and read. They also provide a handy “Rate Your Date” bookmark. But this isn’t speed dating. They are asking you to give the book a chance, to see what’s on the inside rather than judging by appearances. Don’t like what you find on the inside? No matter. You can take it back home (to the library) and block its number (probably not possible, but you never have to see it again). And if you also turn in your Rate Your Date bookmark, you are entered into a drawing for an unspecified grand prize. Wouldn’t it be galling if the grand prize was that book, showing up on your doorstep again? Blind Date with a Book runs through March 5. Winners will be contacted the second week in March. [DF]