The Roseville Theatre Arts Academy’s auditorium was sold out Sunday, Sept. 7, as the Sacramento Regional Theatre Alliance announced the winners of its Youth Elly Awards.
Sutter Street Theatre and St. Mary’s High School came away with the most awards, each garnering six. They were followed by Rocklin Community Theatre, taking home five wins. Continue reading “Youth Elly Award Ceremony”
An anticipatory buzz filled the West Sacramento Community Center on Sunday night as theatremakers from all over Sacramento gathered to hear the announcement of the 438 nominations for the Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance’s Elly Awards. Continue reading “The 2014 Elly Nomination Party”
My amazing friend Jake Donahue sent me photos for my upcoming article on Sacramento Art Glass. The piece is slated for publication in Mainline magazine this fall (to be released in early December).
Jake’s work is absolutely fantastic and I’m too excited not to share just a little bit of his art! I’m so thrilled to have such awesome photos accompanying my article. Here’s a teaser.
The RISE room bustles with activity. Students and staff sit around a large table or work on computers that border the room.
The “wall of fame” to the left of the door is full of photographs of students who have passed through the RISE program at City College.
“They are the core of RISE. That’s what makes us effective. It’s built upon the values, the spirit, the fight of these students,” says counselor Keith Muraki in his small office across the hall where he has his own “wall of fame.” Photos of students with caps, gowns and diplomas smile down from their places next to graduation announcements and thank you notes. Continue reading “Students RISE to the Occasion”
The class meets in one of City College’s aging, weathered, and not-so-temporary buildings that’s located across from Hughes Stadium. Inside the classroom, the wooden instructor’s table near the entrance substitutes as a snack bar with cookies, veggie platters and a bowl of oranges. Meanwhile, desks that once sat in uniform rows, are now haphazardly arranged around the perimeter. Student staff members bustle about, snacking and talking about upcoming open mic events.
Still, even in this scene of controlled chaos, the focus is on Dr. Steve Cirrone, who is perched on one the desks across the room. Before the business of running a student publication begins, he checks in making sure his students are on track, tackling each issue in turn before releasing the students to the business at hand. This is the home of Susurrus City College’s literary journal. Continue reading “Susurrus – Not Just a Whisper”
The front page of the April 28 Sacramento Bee boldly headlined, “Sacramento performing arts center could be next big-ticket item for city.” The article, by Hudson Sangree and Edward Ortiz, describes the debate over renovating the Community Center Theater, a tremendous and ugly cement block of a building at 13th and L streets, or starting fresh and constructing a new, state-of-the-art performing arts center. Continue reading “Sacramento is Overdue for New Performing Arts Center”
“Birdhouses 4” opened with a lively reception April 3 at the Kondos Gallery at City College.
The show, featuring artists’ takes on the show’s namesake birdhouses, was packed-to-bursting for the opening night. Continue reading “Birdhouses 4 at the Kondos Gallery”
Whether a writer is seeking it or not, there is a degree of anonymity in authorship.
And it takes courage to peek out from behind written pages and share one’s works aloud. Authors find themselves on a stage facing a crowd, a book held in shaking hands, and wondering how they’re going to make it through.
But, for those willing to step away from the shadows and into the spotlight, open mics and reading events can be very rewarding.
“It gives an opportunity to students to share their work in ways that’s more than just on a page,” says Dr. Steve Cirrone, a City College English professor and adviser for the school’s annual literary journal, Susurrus. Continue reading “City College’s Literary Journal Takes the Stage”
From Rodda to Lillard, to Lusk and Hughes there are more than a few named structures at City College.
Of the 24 significant landmarks listed on the City College campus map, eight are named after administrators, professors or coaches Of those eight, only the Fischbacher Fine Arts Building is named after a woman.
Amalia Fischbacher was a City College art instructor for 35 years, who was widely known for her love of color. Inside the Fischbacher building resides the Kondos gallery, named for Gregory Kondos, a renowned local painter.
But before all of these administrators, teachers and coaches rose to prominence, Belle Cooledge was the original professor administrator and advocate of City College. Continue reading “A Case for Cooledge”
The average age of today’s live theater patron is over 50 years old, based upon the amount of gray hair I see in Sacramento audiences. With the increasing number of baby boomers reaching retirement, the local theater scene has steady patronage. However, with the aging of the audience, theater directors need to look to the future and find ways to engage a younger demographic.
With hundreds of network and cable TV channels, video games aimed at every age and sensibility, multi-million dollar blockbusters on screens everywhere, and eyes glued to smartphones, how do theaters stand a chance? How do we keep the arts alive, and spark interest in a younger audience while maintaining the established theatergoers’ patronage? Continue reading “Attracting New Audiences with Mixed Media”
MEG MASTERSON 