What happens when you combine an irresistible songbook a la "Mamma Mia" with the romance of "Dirty Dancing"? This weekend, you get "Breaking Up is Hard to Do," which opens Friday at Stars Theatre Restaurant.
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With real-life natural disasters in the news this week, it's a relief that the tornado headed to Tehachapi is a fictional one. And it will take such a force of nature to bring Tarzan, Jane, a talking gorilla and an evil witch from the African jungle to the Tehachapi Mountains. Leave it to Ga…
The Bakersfield Museum of Art prides itself on bringing in work from around the world but sometimes it's nice to celebrate a little California love. The fall exhibitions, which open Thursday, highlight the work of a local teacher and artist as well as OG group of Oakland plein air painters.
Fall arrives later this month but we've already got a bumper crop of activities for this First Friday. The monthly event features a variety of activities and art shows, including the final exhibit for the Younger Gallery.
Bethany Rowlee is a Jane of all trades in the local theater scene. Along with being a regular on the Stars stage, she has been responsible for putting together the Great Songs Series for the downtown theater. Since 2012, the ongoing showcase has highlighted hits from the American songbook, f…
When a show opens with a song promising "something for everyone/comedy tonight," you know it could go one of two ways: a disappointing flop or the thespians make good. While I can't speak for everybody, I know the cast of "Something Funny Happened on the Way to the Forum" at Ovation Theatre …
It’s closing weekend for “The Marvelous Wonderettes" at Stars and those sweet teens have a deal for you. In addition to a 50 percent discount for students for tonight's performance, other guests can take advantage of a buy-one-get-one-free ticket deal for the same show.
While there are a lot of things directors expect audiences to get out of their shows, pain is not usually one of them. But Jennifer Resolme expect people to walk away with a bit from "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum."
Through all life's struggles, the bonds of family can help keep despair at bay. That's the lesson of "Dancing at Lughnasa," opening this weekend at The Empty Space.
What could be more appealing to teens than a musical about teens? How about half off admission (and probably some extra credit for their theater class), which is what Stars Theatre Restaurant is offering for its Thursday productions of "The Marvelous Wonderettes."
Artists can find inspiration in many places — with the possible exception of late summer in Bakersfield. Thankfully local artist and educator Art Sherwyn is ready to lead students out to the coast for his annual plein air retreat.
It's sugar at the matinee, sugar in the lounge, sugar at dinnertime this week when Stars Theatre Restaurant takes a musical look back at the 1950s and '60s with "The Marvelous Wonderettes." All they have to do is dream but you'll need to buy a ticket to see this show following four teen girl…
If you can take the heat, head out to First Friday. There are plenty of activities — many inside air-conditioned locations — to keep you busy as you head into the weekend. Here's a quick roundup.
Save the blockbusters for the movie theater. You don't have to check your mind at the door with the deeper theatrical fare headed to Bakersfield College this weekend.
Don't let the name keep you away: "Vampire Lesbians of Sodom" is more about laughs than leering.
Many of us have got the crew together for a paint night but if you'd like to try your hand at a new artistic skill, head over to the Bakersfield Museum of Art Thursday night.
Sometimes you connect with the world created by a fictional work, relating to the characters or their story in a way that makes you want to linger there. And while we might not want to perform a number in the rain (especially after gentlemanly relinquishing our umbrella to a passerby), there…
If you checked your patriotic spirit after your last errant firework scared dogs through the neighborhood, it's time for a new proposal. Rather than "piddle, twiddle, and resolve," solve the problem of what to do this weekend by heading to Ovation to catch "1776" before its run ends.
What is art? The answers are myriad, never more so than when the show in question is called "Art." The play, opening Friday for a four-show run at The Empty Space, is going to give it a go.
Reality television is rife with drama but what happens when it delves into true melodrama? That's what the Gaslight aims to find out this weekend when it revisits the "Real Housewives of Oildale."
It's been hot and sunny for days now but there's rain in the forecast for downtown Bakersfield this week. At least by way of Chester Avenue, where Stars Theatre Restaurant debuts its production of "Singin' in the Rain."
It's not uncommon for actors to bond during a show's run, forging friendships that last beyond the final curtain call. But it's not often that the performers get a chance to get the band back together for another show. Luckily, Ovation Theatre is all about making dreams happen this Friday wi…
This is no illusion: This month's "Celebrities of Magic" show will feature talent from Bakersfield and beyond.
While this week started with a call for the red, white and blue, this weekend is big on green as the Bakersfield Youth Fine Arts Academy presents "Shrek the Musical."
Bakersfield is ready to give Disneyland's Enchanted Tiki Room a run for its money this First Friday. Although there will be no animatronic birds, Bubble Pop Gallery will host its own epic “Tiki Bubble Beach Party” art show.
It's been more than 240 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but we don't seem as far removed from the concerns of that instrumental period in U.S. history — a land in upheaval, delegates looking for a way to establish and uphold freedom in their country.
Downtown has its fair share of art from galleries and murals but a new one is in the works to beautify Bakersfield.
Many creative types are more active in the evening hours so it's only fitting that a collaborative art project will take place as the sun's setting.
Many headed into their golden years are content to just remember the good ol' days of being footloose and fancy free, but for a batch of dedicated performers the fun is just beginning. Stars Theatre Restaurant returns this weekend with its popular annual presentation of "Wrinkles," a variety…
Rock music is nothing new when it comes to musicals, but if you're looking for the glam-rock concert feel with theater seating, "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" is ready to rock at The Empty Space.
Good comedy, like show planning, often comes down to timing. In the case of LOL Comedy Night, Ovation Theatre's first-ever standup comedy show taking place Saturday, it was the best of both worlds.
A master entertainer is preparing to take the stage Monday as part of the “Celebrities of Magic” series. Magician Kenrick “Ice” McDonald will perform at Gaslight Melodrama as part of the monthly series curated by local magician Ron Saylor.
Thursday is becoming a good night for theater, at least if you’re in need of a slight discount.
Did you miss the reception for “Superhero Art Show” at Bubble Pop Gallery for First Friday? Take heart, art lovers. The work is now on display at Temblor Brewing Co. The work, featuring amazing characters from the Marvel Universe and beyond, will remain up through the month in the main dining area.
Proving that First Friday is not the only night for art downtown, the Arts Council of Kern is hosting exhibitions opening Thursday at its Access Center Gallery.
What's better than a fancy breakfast with a chance to meet a pack of princesses and princes? How about being able to hang out for the whole morning? This year's Princess Breakfast at Stars Theatre Restaurant, taking place June 10, brings the star power of the characters for a more interactiv…
Not all heroes wear masks but some artists might this First Friday. Among the exhibits opening for the monthly gathering is the Super Hero Art Show at Bubble Pop Gallery. Characters from the Marvel Universe and beyond will be featured on the walls of the H Street pop-up gallery.
The Bakersfield Museum of Art is known for stepping up its game to draw in visitors with events celebrating the arts and the community. This Thursday it's a literal step as the museum incorporates dance into its monthly Art After Dark gathering.
Do you think that painting you picked up at a yard sale is really a treasure? What about that bracelet from Great-Grandma Ethel? Some experts will be coming to town to help you discern whether there's more than meets your shrewd eye for a valuation event at the Bakersfield Museum of Art on June 5.
What can turn an ordinary night into something extraordinary? For some, a trip to the theater is just the trick, watching a show come together in dance and song. If you are one such thrill-seeker, Stars Theatre Restaurant has just the show for you with “Pippin.”
Although the Shafter Colours Arts Festival stages most of its events in February, it has expanded further the past two years to bring related activities into the spring and .
Celebrating nine successful and would-be U.S. presidential assassins and their accomplices in a Stephen Sondheim musical, presented with an opening weekend carnival gala? There's only one place in town that's going down: The Empty Space.
When writing the original musicals performed at Gaslight Melodrama, Michael Prince mines the local wealth of locations and cultural references. So in all these years, it's surprising that he's never taken the story to Buttonwillow. That all changes this weekend with the debut of "Buttonwillo…
There are few things more authentic that life in a Bakersfield trailer park, but how blurred is the line when you throw a possible priceless artwork into the mix?
Although chanteuse Effie lets erstwhile beau Curtis know "I am telling you I'm not going," you better plan to get going to Ovation Theatre for the premiere of "Dreamgirls"
School will be out this summer but some hard-working students have already put their best work forward for a new show, part of the exhibitions opening Thursday at the Bakersfield Museum of Art.
April showers bring May flowers but when it comes to downtown Bakersfield, we're happy to see art in bloom this month. First Friday returns with a bumper crop of events.
Liberty High School's theater department is back at it again with another show for Bakersfield, and the cast and crew have never been so excited to show their hard work.
Each month, the Bakersfield Museum of Art presents a new way to engage visitors to both experience the art on display and to take a creative journey beyond it. For Thursday's event, the cast and director of "Three Sisters," recently performed at The Empty Space, will bring the show to life i…
You don't need an act of God to facilitate inter-high school cooperation — but it doesn't hurt. But bringing together the theater departments of Highland and Garces Memorial high schools for a production of "Godspell" didn't really require any divine intervention.
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