Don’t let the world tell you that you can’t be a gardener. All plant enthusiasts and even plant killers (how much water is too much?) are invited to reinvent themselves as green thumbs with help of a workshop from UC Master Gardeners.
Friday, April 26
California Modernist
While the Bohemians were writing poetry and making Carmel famous, a group of painters, mostly women, were doing the work of building a sustainable arts community that would become Carmel. Jane Gallatin Powers was the “spiritual rock” of the nascent art colony. Her story and artwork have never been published, until now. The Carmel Foundation invites the public to a presentation and book signing with Erin Lee Gafill, who wrote Jane Gallatin Powers – A California Modernist (2024). She reconstructed Gallatin Powers’ story out of family letters, newspaper clippings and interviews with those few who remembered her. The book is lavishly illustrated with Gallatin Powers’ paintings, drawings and historical photographs, researched and written by her great-great-granddaughter, Gafill, an award-winning artist and author from Big Sur. She is on the creative arts faculty of the Esalen Institute and Rancho La Puerta in Tecate, Baja California. [AP]
2pm Friday, April 26. Carmel Foundation, Lincoln Street and 8th Avenue, Carmel. Free; the book is available for purchase at the event. 624-1588, carmelfoundation.org.
Off the Tracks
York School’s upcoming production of Ride the Cyclone is described as a “mesmerizing tale of a high school choir who meet a fate both tragic and miraculous on a roller coaster.” Thirty-somethings will know just how accurate that is: “tragic” because you realize you can no longer ride as many coasters as you once could in your 20s, and “miraculous” because you only come away with a headache (this author is speaking from experience). Luckily, this musical is about high schoolers, so they don’t have to worry about that. Instead, Ride the Cyclone is about a high school class that meets their doom on a faulty roller coaster, and must work their way back to the land of the living. York School’s production features a cast of 17 students in grades 9-12, led by director Andrea Hart, who is artistic director of Cabrillo Stage. [EC]
7pm Fridays and Saturdays April 26-May 4; 2pm Saturday, May 4. Gatanaga Theatre, York School, 9501 York Road, Monterey. $15/general admission; $10 students/faculty. 372-7338, york.org/theatre.
Ride the Cyclone is a play about a high school class (played by high schoolers) who meet their doom on a faulty roller coaster, then work their way back to the land of the living.
Saturday, April 27
Living Culture
Music, food and history all come together for the Asian Cultural Fair in Salinas’ Chinatown neighborhood. Japanese, Chinese and Filipino community members share their history and many contributions to Salinas and broader Monterey County. Attendees from all cultural backgrounds are invited to enjoy traditional food, see dances, watch cultural demonstrations such as bonsa and Kendo martial art and check out exhibitions. The festival also includes a car show, craft vendors and Asian artifacts sales. A walking tour that takes curious visitors back in time to when Chinatown was booming. Nonprofit ACE (Asian Cultural Experience of Salinas) has a goal to turn the Republic Café, a place where the Asian community gathered, into a museum. Learn about their latest efforts at this festive celebration. [CJ]
9am-4pm Saturday, April 27. Salinas Chinatown, various locations; the walking tour begins at the Filipino Center, 250 Calle Cebu, and stops at the Republic Café, Moongate Plaza and the Buddhist Temple. Free. acesalinas2014@gmail.com, salinasace.org.
Marine Landing
Just what goes on behind the locked doors of the mysterious laboratory? Moss Landing Marine Laboratories dares you… invites you, rather… to find out during their second in-person open house. There are scavenger hunts (what could they turn up?), educational speed talks (have the scientists genetically modified the vocal cords of scholars?) and an invertebrate touch tank (don’t worry, those monsters rarely bite). Actually, we’re sure (mostly) that they don’t bite. That’s why the open house at the global marine sciences lab, operated by seven CSU campuses, is a must. In addition to the fun stuff and the silent auction, there are exhibits on everything from kelp forests to penguins. So in one day you can learn a lot about Monterey Bay and beyond, see the scope of research at the facility and get friendly with invertebrates and the humans who dedicate their lives to studying them. Laboratories can be a real good time for the entire family. [DF]
9am-4pm Saturday, April 27. Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, 8272 Moss Landing Road, Moss Landing. Free. 771-4400, mlml.sjsu.edu.
Feeling Grounded
There are thousands of agricultural acres all around us, but plenty of residential homes have no yard. But does that mean you can’t have a garden? Not at all! The motto of this family-friendly workshop is “No backyard? No problem!” Learn how to turn any little sliver of space – like a front step, porch or driveway – into a thriving herb, vegetable or flower garden. Learn from the expert UC Master Gardeners how to start and maintain a real garden in a tiny space. Each participating household gets potting soil, a watering can and a choice of vegetables or flowers; children will be assigned a garden-related craft project in case they’re not patient enough to wait for the fruits of their labors to appear on the kitchen table a few weeks from now. Get your hands dirty and enjoy the process of gardening, wherever you are. [SR]
10-11:30am English workshop, 11:30am-1pm Spanish workshop on Saturday, April 27. Cesar Chavez Library, 615 Williams Road, Salinas. Free; RSVP required. 758-7345, kathrynb@ci.salinas.ca.us, salinaspubliclibrary.org.
Best of the Best
Classical music by great composers like Johannes Brahms and Franz Schubert has stood the test of time. But their music can sometimes feel staid. It takes energetic, enthusiastic musicians to bring great works from the Romantic period to life, and the duo of Tsien-Hsin Cindy Wu on violin and Ines Irawati on piano are the perfect pair to do that. This recital, part of Hidden Valley’s appropriately titled “virtuosi” programming, features great musicians performing great music in the rustic setting of Hidden Valley. Expect these accomplished artists, both known for expressivity on their instruments, to make these centuries-old songs feel relevant. [SR]
7pm Saturday, April 27. Hidden Valley Music Seminars, 104 W. Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley. $25. 659-3115, hiddenvalleymusic.org.
Indonesian-born pianist Ines Irawati is in demand as a solo recitalist, a collaborative pianist and a vocal coach. She performs at Hidden Valley Music Seminars.
Keys and Strings
Together, Desirée Ruhstrat (violin), David Cunliffe (cello), Aurélien Fort Pederzoli (viola) and Marta Aznavoorian (piano) make up the newly formed Chicago Piano Quartet, which nonprofit Chamber Music Monterey Bay is bringing to the Sunset Center to regale listeners with a melodic mix of four different instruments. But the familiarity between the musicians predates the quartet’s formation – Ruhstrat and Cunliffe have both performed together in two trios that include one of the other members of what is now a quartet. And it should be a lively, impressive collaboration – one of the aforementioned trios, Lincoln Trio, won a Grammy in 2017, and the other, Black Oak Ensemble, saw their latest album hit number one on Billboard’s classical chart in July 2022. This show is a chance to see what these artists have been up to since, and a pre-concert talk, which starts at 6:30pm, gives attendees an opportunity to learn about some of the finer points of classical music. [DS]
7:30pm Saturday, April 27 (pre-concert talk at 6:30pm). Sunset Center, San Carlos Street at 9th Avenue, Carmel. $25-$63. 620-2048, chambermusicmontereybay.org.
Sunday, April 28
Delights, Delights
The Carmel Delights – a “delicious ensemble” of dancers from the local area brought together for their love of lace, sequins and booty shaking – present Speakeasy Delights, featuring a guest performance by Vixen Deville. Members of the Carmel Delights are classically trained dancers who combine aspects of professional dancing with the fun, flirty theatrics of burlesque for a sensation that is sure to satisfy. This dance company originated in 2014 in Monterey. Since then, the Delights have performed internationally throughout the U.S., U.K. and Spain. They’re back on a hometown stage this weekend with award-winning variety performer Vixen as their host. [AP]
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