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  • Bill’s Shorts Two: Chart Topping Comedies

    Bill’s Shorts Two: Chart Topping Comedies

    Coming off of a successful first week, there are still three remaining shows to catch original, new, hilarious theatre here in Downey. The intimate format of the Epic Lounge makes this a dynamic performance to experience.

    BS2 Tshirt 2Bill’s Shorts Two: Chart Topping Comedies
    5 short comedic plays written by locally and nationally produced playwrights, Bill Blush, Megan Breen, Diana Burbano and Forrest Hartl.

    Produced by resident director Sylvia Blush, Bill’s Shorts Two is a collaboration between many talented artists. Inspired by the power of music, the playwrights have written stories tied together by themes exploring artistry, free-will, identity, sacrifices & the need to hold fast to a moral compass.

    Remaining Show Dates:
    August 22, 23 and 24, 2016 at 8pm
    Doors open at 7pm for Happy Hour

    Venue:
    Downey’s Eclectic Event Venue Epic Lounge
    8239 2nd Street, Downey, CA 90241

    For Tickets:
    Buy online and secure your seats at http://bpt.me/2579659
    or
    Reserve your seats and pay cash in person. Email us your request: BillsShortsThePlays@gmail.com

    About the Show:

    In 2013 Downey Arts Coalition sponsored Bill’s Shorts: a brief evening of one act comedies. It was a raucous one night only staged reading of four plays and a fully produced twenty minute romp in the dark all written by Bill Blush and directed by Sylvia Blush.Returning Summer 2016 is the husband and wife duo PLUS incredibly talented playwrights, Bill Blush, Megan Breen, Diana Burbano and Forrest Hartl.Bill’s Shorts Two: Chart-Topping Comedies is a fully produced eight show run of comedic plays inspired by the power of music.
    August 14 at 3pm and 7pm
    August 15, 16, 17, 22, 23 and 24 at 8pmPre-Sale $10+tax use passcode: shortshorts
    Online $12+tax
    At the door $15 (cash only)Free parking. 90 minute performance. Good eats in the Downtown area.The Plays (in show order):
    French Toast by Bill Blush (10 min.)
    Mop in hand and a song in his heart a free-spirited techie challenges authority to think outside the box.

    Run To You by Megan Breen (10 min):
    An eccentric couple’s happy romance is put to the test when something vital to their bliss takes off to search for its own.

    Linda by Diana Burbano (10 min):
    A super bad ass story of finding your inner hero.

    Song of the Armadillo by Forrest Hartl (10 min): Adapted from a Bolivian folktale, Song Of the Armadillo follows the journey of Pichi, a small armadillo with big dreams.

    Damn You Kenny! by Bill Blush (30 min) A leader desperately tries to hold on to his group’s ethics as a bi-weekly meeting slowly spirals out of control.

    Producer/Director Sylvia Blush is a 2014 Mellon Fellow, 2015 Oregon Shakespeare Festival FAIR alum and 2016 Directors Lab West participant. Director Julianna Stephanie Ojeda is an emerging actor/director from the UCI Claire Trevor School of the Arts.

    FEATURING: Chloe Tatiana Avila, Juan Enrique Carrillo, Jessica Delgadillo, Andrea Esparza, Alberie Rachele Hansen, Forrest Hartl, Taylor Hawthorne, Frank Ledezma, Melissa Legaspi, Gilbert Martinez, Tahirih Moeller, David Ohlsen, Julianna Stephanie Ojeda, Emmanuel Plascencia and Rocky Sanchez

    Designers: Geronimo Guzman (Set), Thompson Tran (Light/Sound), Gina Reynoso (Make-Up), Katy Macias (costume) and vocal coach Beverly Crain

    Stage Management: Chris Amador and Jennifer Calderon

    Producers: Sylvia Blush, Bill Blush and Forrest Hartl

    BillShortsMontage

  • Tamara Madison at Poetry Matters August 18th

    Tamara Front

    On Thursday, August 18th, Poetry Matters welcomes Tamara Madison, author of the collection “Wild Domestic” (Pearl Editions; July, 2011) and the chapbook “The Belly Remembers” (Pearl Editions, 2004). Her work has appeared in numerous small press journals and anthologies. Two of her poems have also been featured on Garrison Keillor’s Writers Almanac. Tamara is a California native who grew up on a citrus farm in the Coachella Valley. She has two grown children and teaches French and English in a high school in Los Angeles.

    Tamara Madison Facebook Event Link

    Doors open at 7
    Open mike starts at 7:30
    Stay Gallery is located at 11140 Downey Avenue, just north of Firestone in the heart of downtown Downey

     

  • Judith Terzi at Poetry Matters July 21

    Judith Terzi at Poetry Matters July 21

    terzi-175x205Poetry Matters welcomes Judith Terzi at Stay Gallery on Thursday July 21.  Judith’s most recent chapbooks, If You Spot Your Brother Floating By, and Sharing Tabouli, are collections of memoir poems.  Now a member of the Claremont Poets group, she holds an M.A. in French Literature and has taught high school French for many years in Pasadena as well as English at California State University, Los Angeles, and in Algiers, Algeria.  Her Ghazal for a Chambermaid shows a mastery of exotic forms and her wide-ranging poems addressing current events have been included in Malala: Poems for Malala Yousafzai, and Times They Were A-Changing:Women Remember the 60s & 70s.  Open Microphone for local poets starts at 7:30, and the public is invited to attend.

    Stay Gallery

    11140 Downey Ave.

    Downey, CA 90241

    lorine@www.downeyarts.org

  • Call to Artists – Cosmic Art Show

    Call to Artists – Cosmic Art Show

    Call to Artists! Join us in our next group art exhibition: Cosmic coming to the Downey Civic Theatre October 2nd to the 25th. Downey Arts Coalition presents the show in collaboration with the Downey Symphony Orchestra’s fall concert.

    The theme is, “The universe, sun, moon, outer space, celestial bodies, space travel, terrestrial landscapes and space exploration.” Downey has a special connection to space, as the home of the Apollo, creators of the Apollo capsules, and the place where the Space Shuttle was designed and many of the parts built.

    All medias, mixed media, all sizes, self-contained. No fee to submit, each selected piece is subject to a participation fee of $5. Deadline is Monday, September 19th.

    Take us on a journey into the stars and the vast reaches of space to worlds outside our understanding. Mankind’s imagination was realized as we went beyond our fears with space exploration, gazing upon the wonder beyond our home into the celestial beauty of the cosmos.

    Selected artists will be featured in the Symphony concert program and be publicly recognized from the stage, as well as have the opportunity to purchase discounted tickets to the evening’s performance.

    For consideration, email andrewh@www.downeyarts.org, Jpeg images of the artwork, and list the title, size, medium and a sentence about the relation to the theme.

    CosmicArtShowCall

  • Audition for Bill’s Shorts Two (Now closed)

    Audition for Bill’s Shorts Two (Now closed)

    **Note, all roles have been filled. Thank you for your interest, be sure to like Bill’s Shorts on Facebook.

    Auditions for Bill’s Shorts Two: Chart-Topping Comedies.

    Tuesday, June 7 2016, 5pm-10pm

    Monday, June 13, 206, 5PM-10pm (Cancelled)

    Callbacks: Tuesday, June 14, 2016 5pm-10pm

    Six musically inspired plays by Anthony Aguilar, Bill Blush, Megan Breen, Diana Burbano and Forrest Hartl. Directed by Sylvia BLush and Alejandra Cisneros

    Needed: You! 15 actors, all genders, any ethnicity.

    Themes: Love, music, belonging, acceptance, free-will, loss, addiction and all through the comedic lens. Mature language, Mature content (no nudity). 

    Performance Dates: August 14 at 3PM & 7PM; August 15-17, 22-24 at 8pm. Rehearsals: beginning June 20th but based on availability. Tech: week leading up to opening. Stipend: $10/performance.

    Submit your headshot and resume to: billsshortstheplays@gmail.com

    Auditions Bills Shorts2

  • Water Music/Fire Dance opens May 13

    Water Music/Fire Dance opens May 13

    RAS Fire Dance
    Roy Anthony Shabla

    Roy Anthony Shabla will exhibit his new solo show Water Music / Fire Dance at the Mary Paxon Art Gallery from Tuesday, May 10, to Saturday, May 28. If you would like to meet the artist, ask questions about pricing or the artwork, or simply enjoy a night among art and artists, please attend their reception on Friday, May 13, 7-9 p.m.

    Roy Anthony Shabla is a painter and poet living in the Los Angeles area. His large scale work, Water Music: Blue and Gray 2015, was exhibited onstage opening night of the Downey Symphony Orchestra, October 2015. That 36-foot painting is included in this show with new work from the same series. Shabla is the Director of Collections for the Downey Museum of Art and hosts a monthly salon in his home with live music, poetry readings, and featured artists. All are welcome.

    The Mary Paxon Gallery is located at the Norwalk Cultural Arts Center, adjacent to the Norwalk Arts & Sports Complex at Norwalk park. The address is 13200 Clarkdale Ave, Norwalk, CA 90650.

    More information at ArtPin

    water_music_fire_dance

  • Downey Master Chorale Spring Concert May 22

    Downey Master Chorale Spring Concert May 22

    For their Spring Concert, Downey Master Chorale will present the youthful, brilliant, often deeply spiritual GLORIA by Antonia Vivaldi. Featured in this program will be the Da Capo Players from Costa Mesa, this is to complement the voices and enhance the pleasure of the listeners. Rounding out the program will be masterpieces by G. F. Handel, Gabriel Fauré, Randall Thompson, John Rutter and Rodgers and Hammerstein. A dessert reception will follow the concert. Come with the whole family. This is an ideal opportunity to introduce your children to classical music.

    Date: Sunday May 22
    Time: 7PM
    Place: 9001 Paramount Blvd, Downey CA, 90240, Cornerstone Christian Worship Center

    The Downey Master Chorale is open to all singers who desire excellence, auditions are ongoing to join the group. Contact info@downeymasterchorale.org for more information. We are also seeking sponsors and financial supporters for the concert. If you would like your business featured in the program, or can help us fulfill our mission to bring classical choral music to this community, please call (310) 941-3042.

    DMC_May2015_Poster

  • A Night with the Classical Elements

    Another successful art show, “Classical Elements,” on April 9th presented two dozen local artists’ work along with the Downey Symphony concert, “A European Exhibition.” The concert featured a new work from composer Oscar Navarro, who also wrote the Downey Overture, a whimsical orchestral piece dedicated to our city. Clarinetist Kelli O’Connor was the featured performer for Navarro’s Clarinet Concerto No. 2.

    Special thanks to all the artists who participated, as well as the concert production team, curator Eloise Ball, producer Pat Gil and coordinator Andrew Hernandez. The Downey Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Music director Sharon Lavery, and supported by the Downey Symphonic Society, president Larry Lewis and a board of dedicated individuals who keep this important cultural institution alive.

    We are also grateful to the City of Downey and Mayor Alex Saab for presenting a city proclamation to the Downey Symphony Orchestra and a certificate of recognition to composer Oscar Navarro and, acknowledging his outstanding contributions to our city.

    Consider supporting the Downey Symphony Orchestra through your donations and participating in fundraising events. This will help continue their legacy of impactful music and cultural experiences in our community.

  • Poetry Matters Contest: Downey and the Planets, deadline July 31

    POETRY MATTERS CONTEST

    DOWNEY AND THE PLANETS

    planets

    To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the City of Downey’’s incorporation, and Downey’’s illustrious history with the aerospace industry, the Downey Symphonic Society in conjunction with Poetry Matters is sponsoring a contest  on a space-related theme suggested by, but not limited to, Gustav Holst’’s The Planets.

    PRIZES     $100 First Prize,   $50 Second Prize

    AND  2 Gold Tier season tickets to Downey Symphony’’s 2016-17 Season

    for First Prize Winner, Offered by the Downey Symphonic Society

    Open now, April 21, 2016; Deadline: July 31, 2016

    Publication: in Downey Symphony Concert Program October 22, 2016

    Read: on stage prior to performance at Downey Symphony Concert Oct. 22, 2016, when Holst’s The Planets will be

    performed at the Downey Theatre, in honor of the City of Downey’s 60th anniversary

    Display: Downey Theatre Lobby Gallery for month of October with Planets Art Show; Lobby at Columbia Space Center

    TOP TEN poems to be printed in Commemorative Booklet distributed at the Concert (funding permitting)

    The Planets, Op. 32, is a seven-movement orchestral suite by the English composer Gustav Holst.  The piece has seven movements, each named after a planet (Earth not represented) and its corresponding mythological figure and astrological characteristics.

    Catch it on Youtube, performed by many Symphony Orchestras and also rock bands.
    1. Mars, the Bringer of War
    2. Venus, the Bringer of Peace
    3. Mercury, the Winged Messenger
    4. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity;
    5. Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age
    6. Uranus, the Magician
    7. Neptune, the Mystic.

    Submit up to 3 unpublished poems not longer than 40 lines each, to lorine@www.downeyarts.org

    No name on poem. Include cover sheet with name, poem title(s), email address, brief bio.

    Line count includes spaces .  Judge: Judith Pacht.  Winners announced by September 15, 2016.

  • Downey Symphony presents a night of art and music

    Downey Symphony presents a night of art and music

    This article was originally printed in The Downey Patriot.

    “Waves In Motion,” glass sculpture by Michael Robinson, will be one of several art pieces on display at the Downey Theatre in conjunction with the Downey Symphony performance on April 9.
    “Waves In Motion,” glass sculpture by Michael Robinson, will be one of several art pieces on display at the Downey Theatre in conjunction with the Downey Symphony performance on April 9.

    DOWNEY – The Downey Symphonic Society, once again in collaboration with the Downey Arts Coalition, concludes the 2015– 16 Concert Series of the Downey Symphony Orchestra at the Downey Theatre by presenting an evening filled with classical music and and art exhibit with the theme “The Classical Elements – Earth, Water, Air, and Fire.”

    Music Director Sharon Lavery describes another delightful evening of music planned to conclude the 58th season of the Downey Symphony Orchestra, “This concert is entitled “A European Exhibition” and we will have two works by one of our favorite composers, Oscar Navarro. There is no better way to start off this great program than to perform Oscar’s piece specifically written for and dedicated to the Downey Symphony Orchestra, “Downey Overture.”

    Also on the program is Navarro’s Clarinet Concerto No. 2, performed by nationally recognized clarinetist, Kelli O’Connor. The masterful “Pictures at an Exhibiition” by Modest Mussorgsky will conclude the program, topping off what promises to be an inspiring evening of music.”

    Opening the concert will be Catherine Peterson, winner of the “Baton Auction” fundraiser in April of 2015. The musical selection she will be conducting is “to be announced” at the time of this article’s writing.

    Once again, after intermission at this concert, there will be the 2016 “Baton Auction” held to raise funds to support the Downey Symphony Orchestra and also give the lucky winner the opportunity to lead the stage full of professional musicians in April of 2017.

    All of the above activity will take place within the auditorium of the Downey Theatre beginning at 8:00 p.m. However, the doors to the Downey Theatre lobby will open at 6:30 p.m. for the “Opening Night” of an art exhibit entitled “The Classical Elements – Earth, Water, Air, and Fire” curated by Pat Gil and Eloisa Ball, members of the Downey Arts Coalition. The theme was chosen in connection with Earth Day which is on April 22.

    In the “Call To Artists” looking for artwork to feature in the exhibit, the parameters were set for the work to be from any medium or mixed media, any size, and self-contained. Of course, the artwork must be within the theme set for the exhibit.

    Guidelines included the suggestions that the artists “embark on a journey exploring the classical elements or the temperaments of people, places or things. Unearth them individually or combine them all to create an explosion of new matter.”

    Pat Gil explained, “I am pleased to have the following wonderful artists returning: Carolina Del Toro, our local abstract nature photographer who is one of the favorites that is always asked about; Lindsay Yost, a local mosaic artist whose wonderful imagination and craftsmanship is always a crowd pleaser, and has the audience coming back for more; Susy Arteaga , another local artist who often sells her works at these exhibits, is gifted with a wonderful use of color and seems to be getting more talented with every exhibit; and Kristine Augustyn who uses wonderful colors that remind people of Monet.”

    Eloisa “EJ” Ball added, “I’m very pleased to see artists from different cities wishing to participate in our art exhibitions.  We have an artist, Geoffrey E. Levitt, coming from Lancaster, CA to exhibit his watercolor on paper, Old Point Loma Lighthouse. We are also excited to introduce a 2016 Award Winning Artist from Orange County, Michael Robinson.  Michael works in glass and we are thrilled to exhibit his amazing surfing wave sculptures.

    His sixteen years of experience in sculpting glass have brought him to the point of capturing life and movement in his glass pieces.  His “Waves in Motion” sculpture consists of three waves and it is incredible! We are very humbled to see our local artists supporting the Downey Symphony Orchestra concerts and very honored that many new artists from different cities are delighted to be exhibiting in our art exhibitions and supporting our orchestra as well.”

    Additionally, Pat Gil noted, “Trista Dominqu is the featured poet and has written a poem specifically for the concert that goes with the art show. The name of the poem is “Born From Water” and it will be read on stage right after Sharon’s pre-concert lecture is over.”

    On the day of the concert and art exhibit, Saturday, April 9, the Downey Chamber of Commerce’s Street Faire will be going on until 7 p.m. Brookshire Avenue will be closed from Firestone Boulevard to 5th Street. Theatre performers and patrons should allow extra time to find parking – not necessarily in the immediate vicinity of the Downey Theatre.

    To restate the facts: The art exhibit “The Classical Elements – Earth, Water, Air, and Fire” and the Downey Symphony Orchestra concert “A European Exhibition” take place at the Downey Theatre on Saturday, April 9.

    The lobby doors open at 6:30 p.m.. A lecture about the music being performed is given from the stage by Music Director/Conductor Sharon Lavery at 7:15 p.m. The concert begins at 8 p.m.

    Tickets are still available at the Downey Theatre Box Office, 8435 Firestone Blvd., open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, and one hour before the concert. You may order tickets by telephone at (562) 861-8211 or online at downeysymphony.org.