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May 2009

Astronaut John Grunsfeld has been to Telluride Mountainfilm twice, the first time in 2000, and the second in 2006.

IN 2006, John spoke on the subject was ET, NASA's search for planets with "life signatures." His objective: to help reframe people's thinking about life in the universe. He also addressed "Man, Moon, and Beyond," how NASA was planning its next push towards manned missions. Finally, John provided an astronaut’s eye view of the mountain ranges of our blue planet, not from the Hubble – which Grunsfeld has been in charge of repairing – but from his own Hasselblad. But the Hubble has been one of the astronaut's pet project for years.

18 May, 2009 /

[click "Play" button to hear Susan's interview with Jane]

Jane The girl can’t help it. Long before any inconvenient truths, before green became the new red, white and blue, longtime, part-time Telluride local Jane Goren was busy recycling, turning the detritus of people’s lives into edgy fine art.  

Jane came buy her obsession naturally: in the corner of Brooklyn where she grew up no one ever threw anything away.

SPAGHETTI IDARADO  In 1974, Goren moved to Los Angeles. Years later, in this landscape of insecurity both real and imagined, an earthquake struck. The artist began collecting discarded windows, which she painted on the reverse side of the glass in an offbeat attempt to restore order to a disoriented city. These images also allowed Jane to examine issues of voyeurism, surveillance, and the deceitful nature of appearances. The Telluride Gallery of Fine Art, her local gallery, has examples of this work in its stable, and a number of pieces are on display at La Marmotte.

17 May, 2009 /

Friday night, May 15, a cast of Telluride teenagers earned a standing ovation at the end of their performance of "Audition" at the Sheridan Opera House. Teenagers playing (mostly) teenagers, dressed as teenagers, dealing with teenagers' concerns and without sets: it was a great evening....

17 May, 2009 /

[Editor's note: Click the "play" button to listen to Telluride Mountainfilm guest Chef Ann Cooper talk about why she thinks the National School Lunch Program needs major tweaking and what she and others are doing to address the challenge.]

Chef_ann_aboutphoto What's wrong with this picture?

While legions of parents are obsessing about whether their offspring are getting enough vitamins or consuming too much sugar and salt, as they are trying in growing numbers to encourage healthy eating habits, at school millions of kids are consuming French fries, processed chicken nuggets and syrupy fruit salad, standard fare on the average commodity-driven lunch menu.

According to Chef Ann Cooper, aka  "Renegade Lunch Lady," the National School Lunch Program is an antique – it was launched in 1946 as a public safety net – in dire need of recycling. She contends  we won't have much hope for future generations of healthy kids unless we begin teaching them what good food really is.

16 May, 2009 /

[click "Play" to hear Susan talk to Erika Gordon]Telluride Film Festival presents Children's Film Festival Created in 1928, Mickey became the icon for The Walt Disney Company and the world's most famous mouse. A film introducing this anthropomorphic cartoon...

16 May, 2009 /

May 14 to 21, 2009

Visible Planets: Morning: Venus, Mars and Jupiter  Evening: Saturn

Edward Abbey, Sky Islands and Magnificent Western Sunsets

DSC01049 The Sun is now setting directly behind the Upper La Sal Mountains to our west in Utah – the “sky island” so revered and ultimately made famous by the great American naturalist, Edward Abbey, when he was just starting out as a park ranger for the USFS in Arches National Monument in Moab.

The perfectly shaped, relatively small mountains are so familiar to me now that I rarely sit in awe of their grandeur. But when we first started looking for property on Wrights Mesa in the early ‘90’s, I was adamant about finding a piece from which we could see them. As the Universe would have it, we ended up buying acreage with amazing 360º views – we can see all the way to the Cimarrons above Ridgway in the east and to the Blues and Henrys above Cataract Canyon to the west.

15 May, 2009 /

Trash or treasure? Visit the Sheridan Opera House in Telluride Saturday, May 16, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, for yard-sale deals and free popcorn. Shop for furniture, antiques, toys, household items, music, books, posters and more.  ...

15 May, 2009 /

No doubt we will all say we knew her when. Graduating Telluride senior Alexis Cruzzavala is an exceptional young woman.

Seven years ago, when we first met, Alexis was only 11 and doing a bit part in the Telluride Repertory Theatre's production of "Romeo and Juliet." Even then, she stood out from the crowd: not just smart, she was also articulate, and poised beyond her years. When the conversation turned to acting, she gushed like a broken dam.

Alexis went on to perform in no fewer than eight of director Jen Julia's always memorable productions. She nearly stole the show in her most recent role, "Marty," the Lolita wannabe in "Grease."  She stars in the SAFYPT's upcoming "The Audition."

14 May, 2009 /

[click "Play" button to hear Clint's conversation with Cosy Sheridan] There are lots of things happening at Telluride's Wilkinson Public Library. This time Scott Doser, program director at the library, has laid on a weekend of workshops plus a...

14 May, 2009 /

(editor's note: We did get the video uploaded, finally, so take another look.)

The play's not the thing. "The Audition" is simply a vehicle for a talented group of Telluride teens. Watching them in rehearsal, it was obvious how much they love and respect their longtime director, Jen Julia, and how much they enjoy one another and strutting their stuff on the boards.

"Closing night of Grease, the kids said, 'We want more,' and so I began searching scripts that met the following criteria: Kids would play kids as they had in 'Grease,' and get to work with material with some dramatic grit, something they could sink their teeth into," explained Jen.

14 May, 2009 /