Hot Picks 05.05.22

From Trash to Art

In the old days, the dump was a final destination for unwanted stuff and trash. These days, Monterey Regional Waste Management District is a hub for reuse (thanks to second-hand store Last Chance Mercantile) and even transforming waste into artwork. Since 2016, an artist-in-residence program has invited CSU Monterey Bay arts students to work onsite, starting by gathering materials from Last Chance as well as straight out of the Materials Recovery Facility. 2022 artist-in-residence Taylor Paige Prentiss, a CSUMB senior, presents her project, “Home: The Things We Carry,” in a special installation. “Home is different for each person and is constantly changing,” Prentiss said in an artist statement. “These pieces are meant to challenge the audience’s idea of home.” [SR]

2pm Thursday, May 5 reception with the artist; installation is viewable 9am-4pm until Saturday, May 7. Last Chance Mercantile, 14201 Del Monte Ave., Marina. Free. 264-6900, mrwmd.org/artist-in-residence.

Going Digital

Monterey Museum of Art is opening a new exhibit by digital artist Corinne Whitaker titled “Digital Mindscapes.” The dynamic display includes digital paintings on glass, mirror and light boxes, and 3-D printed and digital sculpture. There are several works created by Whitaker during the 2020 pandemic, as well as seminal pieces from the artist’s career, such as “Eve and Adam,” which Whitaker believes to be among the first life size 3-D sculptures created. “Corinne paints with code,” said the museum’s executive director, Corey Madden. “She sculpts with algorithms and manipulates imagery, daring the viewer to imagine new worlds with her. This exhibition reaffirms the museum’s commitment to sharing the work of innovative local artists.” [AP]

Opens Thursday, May 5. Museum hours: 11am-5pm Thursday – Saturday. Monterey Museum of Art, 559 Pacific St., Monterey. $15/general admission. 372-5477, montereyart.org.

Wild West

Remember that 10-gallon lid that is shoved into a corner of the closet shelf under some equally long forgotten pajamas? That bolo tie that never seems appropriate for office attire? And certainly you long for the days when just a few passes of Aqua Net aerosol hair spray would stand your ’do tall, like Tammy Wynette or Dolly Parton. Well it’s time to let out a whooping yee-haw! Pacific Repertory Theatre is hosting a Western-themed denim and diamonds “Adobe Elegante” fundraiser. Think drinks as big as the hair, boot scootin’ and good grub. The Bubba Pickins Band will be adding the twang for western dancing. There’s two auctions – one silent, one with hollerin’ – and a raffle for some cowboy bling. This rootin’, tootin’ time benefits PacRep’s capital campaign to finish renovation work that will make Golden Bough Theatre a world-class facility. Dang! [DF]

6pm Thursday, May 5. Cooper Molera Adobe, 506 Munras St., Monterey. $245. 622-0700, pacrep.org.

Blonde On Stage

There are so many iconic moments from 2001’s Legally Blonde, in which Elle Woods (played by Reese Witherspoon) transforms herself from stereotypical sorority girl to Harvard law student, that’s its hard to pick a favorite. Maybe it’s when she gives her professor a pink (and scented) copy of her resume. Maybe it’s the bend-and-snap. Maybe it’s just the outfits. In any case, the musical version (2007) of this fun romp is on at the Outdoor Forest Theater, courtesy of Monterey Peninsula College and Monterey High School’s theater departments. “Even though the 2007 musical has some dated elements,” the listing states, “audiences today continue to be inspired and enthralled by Elle Woods’ story.” Your chance to be enthralled by this story of transformation and becoming happens May 5-8. [TCL]

7:30pm Thursday-Saturday, May 5-7, and 4:30pm Sunday, May 8. Forest Theater, Santa Rita Street and Mountain View, Carmel. $25/adults; $14/students. bit.ly/LegallyBlondeMusicalMPC.

Mother May I

What could be better than a totally unique gift made just for you? Or a creative and easy Saturday morning activity for your kids? Here’s an opportunity to combine both at a Mother’s Day jewelery-making workshop for kids (ages 5 and up) at Sol Treasures in King City. Your little ones will spend the morning being creative and learning how to make simple jewelery, and you’ll get a Mother’s Day gift out of it that is sure to be a one-off. Win-win. [TCL]

10am-noon Saturday, May 7. Sol Treasures, 519 Broadway St., King City. $10. 386-9809, soltreasures.com.

Wonder Women

“The Original Wonder Woman” Mother’s Day Supper and Twilight Concert is a celebration of music inspired by women, performed by the Hidden Valley Virtuosi. This Mother’s Day supper and chamber music concert celebrates the brilliance of women composers – and the mothers who have inspired generations of artists and works of art. The program includes “Mother and Child” by William Grant Still, “Songs My Mother Taught Me” by Antonín Dvorák, Sonata for piano and cello by Mélanie Bonis; Piano Trio in G minor by Clara Schumann; and more. These works are performed by three musicians: violinist Tien-Hsin Cindy Wu and special guests Tanya Tomkins (cello) and Ines Irawati (piano). Wu, praised by the Seattle Times as “simply marvelous” and by Taiwan’s Liberty Times for “astonishingly capturing the spirit of the music,” is the artistic director of the Hidden Valley Virtuosi, an elite chamber music group presenting five concerts each season in Hidden Valley’s intimate, acoustically superb theater. [AP]

6pm Sunday, May 8. Hidden Valley Music Seminars, 104 W. Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley. $45. 659-3115, hiddenvalleymusic.org.

Natural Impact

Starting in 1917, there might as well have been an iron curtain surrounding the land then known as Gigling Reservation. Artillery training conducted there by the U.S. Army during World War I made the land unsafe to public access. In the lead-up to the U.S.’s involvement in World War II in 1940, the land became Fort Ord and even more acres were closed off. Decades later we could see the land through chain-link fences, but walking in it would have been hazardous thanks to munitions and explosives littering the landscape. Now the public is getting a peek behind the proverbial curtain into the historic Impact Area within the Fort Ord National Monument, after decades of the Army’s scrubbing of the landscape through controlled burns. It’s still not someplace anyone can traipse through, however, so these guided hikes start with a mandatory safety briefing. There are two walks – one is 1.6 miles and the other is 3.75 miles. Both are on cleared trails adjacent to burned areas. The guides are familiar with the cleanup, as well as the unique habitat that thrives there today. These walks are already sold out, but keep an eye out for similar future events. [PM]

9am Thursday, May 14. Mandatory safety briefing at 9:40am, walks begin at 10am. Fort Ord National Monument. Free; sold out. 393-1284, bit.ly/FortOrdWalk.

HOT PICKS by Tajha Chappellet-Lanier, Dave Faries, Celia Jiménez, Pam Marino, Christopher Neely, Agata Popęda, Sara Rubin and David Schmalz.