'Jukebox' covers decades of songs
| Thursday, Mar 19 2009 09:23 AM
Last Updated Thursday, Mar 19 2009 09:23 AM
An energetic troupe of 12 singers, dancers and musicians is expected to liven up the Rabobank theater stage on Wednesday with "American Jukebox," a roundup of popular and country western music from the 1950s to the '90s.
Diane Ackley, treasurer of Bakersfield Community Concert Association, the sponsoring organization, said the show is done in the style of musical theater with specially designed costumes, sets and lighting.
"There are 10 scenes with a lot of songs in each one; I don't know how many there are but they cover an awful lot of territory," she said. "And there's a gigantic jukebox in the center of the stage in every scene."
Matt Davenport Productions, based in Tennessee, produced the show. Matt Davenport, who originated the company, has written and directed stage shows for Opryland USA, Fiesta Texas, The Showboat Branson Belle, Silver Dollar City and Busch Gardens.
The $30 ticket price is also good for the association's final show on April 26, "Barbra and Frank: The Concert That Never Was."
Empty Space comedy
"Super Villain," a comedy by local author James Kopp, opens Friday for a two-weekend run at The Empty Space.
Kopp, who also appears in the play, said his script was influenced by comic books, a genre he considers to be a modern form of mythology. He provided the following synopsis in an e-mail.
In a comic book world, "life for our villain -- called the Remote -- goes off the deep end after the superhero he spent his life fighting is killed off by a much better supervillain," Kopp said. "The Remote now finds himself alone in the world," and to regain his status, must find another superhero to challenge.
Others in the cast are Matt Christensen, Guinevere PH Dethlefson, Rod Lester, Jenny Hatzman, Bryan Maddern, Thor Reese, Mike Solko, Thomas G. Robinson and Dallas Plater.
'Writers Workshop'
Three out-of-town professionals will be featured at a "Writers Workshop" on Saturday at the Clarion Hotel. The half-day event is sponsored annually by Writers of Kern, which is the Bakersfield branch of the 100-year-old California Writers Club.
Carol Black, president, said the workshop is designed to provide tips for writers and book illustrators at all levels of experience.
"Attending a writing workshop is an invaluable tool for seasoned, as well as aspiring authors," Black said. "While writing my first novel -- 'Never Ask Permission' -- I attended a workshop and came away with a notebook full of information to help improve my manuscript."
Two of the guest speakers are an author-illustrator team from Fresno, Janice Stevens, a writer, and Pat Hunter, a watercolorist. The two women have collaborated on several books, including "William Saroyan: Places in Time," and "Fresno's Architectural Past," and will talk about the process of working together to produce an attractive book that contains informative text illuminated by artwork.
Donna McCrohan Rosenthal, a freelance writer based in Ridgecrest, will talk about "Getting Clips" and how to leverage them into better assignments and sales. Rosenthal's work has been published in Redbook, Cosmopolitan and AAA Travel Monthly. She has appeared on "A&E Biography" and "Oprah."
