Earlier this week, Telluride Inside... and Out provided the meat: the Whos, Whats, Whens, Wheres and Whys of the Telluride Repertory Theatre's upcoming event, plus the non-profit's history. If you missed that post, here's the link for details: /2011/03/telluride-rep-celebrates-20th-anniversary-at-ah-haa-saturday-nite.html.Or simply scroll down our Home Page.
Now it's time for the sizzle.
[click "Play" to hear Susan's rap with Suzan Beraza and Dylan Brooks]
The Telluride Repertory Theatre celebrates its 20+ anniversary in style. The non-profit is throwing with a gala dinner party on Saturday, March 12, 7 – 10 p.m., at the Ah Haa School for the Arts. The event includes a champagne reception, a four-course dinner prepared by Mountain Top Catering and a wine pairing featuring the Durango Wine Experience. The entertainment, "The Best of the REP Musical Revue," includes performances by former REP stars, among them, REP co-founders Suzan Beraza and Angela Watkins.
The history of the Telluride Repertory Theatre Company dates back to when co-founder Suzan Beraza, now of "Bag It" fame, found a brochure about a ski resort in a box canyon with a little theater. The ambitious young actress with a yen to ski sent a resume and an 8 X 10 glossy, waited and heard nothing. Suzan was none too concerned about the dead silence: life is oh so hectic on the boards. It was not until she arrived in town that Suzan discovered the dirty little secret behind Telluride's "theatre": The Nugget was a film house. Bummer. Acting was all Suzan knew how to do.
In Telluride, we save the parades and picnics for the Fourth of July. Locally Mardi Gras, March 8, is all about the music. Music and the traditional baubles and beads. (We love bling.)
The music is thanks to the historic Sheridan Opera House, where local jam band, Joint Point, performs at a special Mardi Gras concert starting at 9 p.m.
Monday, March 7, the Telluride Film Festival's Cinematheque, a club for cinephiles showing FREE films the first Monday of the month, continues its winter series with two more "Films of the Great Depression": "Of Mice and Men" (1939, 106 min.) and "Grapes of Wrath," both based on novels by John Steinbeck. The evening is hosted by Telluride's five-star Wilkinson Public Library and includes food and a lively discussion hosted by Ringmaster David Oyster. The programming is thanks to Telluride Film Fest co-director Gary Meyer, who knows how to pick them. (See the Oscars 2011.)
Published in 1937, "Of Mice and Men" is the touching, tragic story of a friendship set against the backdrop of America during the Great Depression. The story is based on Steinbeck's experiences as a hobo in the 1920s.
The Telluride Student Fashion Show, co-directed by Charlotte Delpit and Devin McCarthy, was a tour de force of directing and choreography, setting the bar pretty darn high for TAB's sold-out gala fashion show on Saturday, March 5. (Get on the waiting list and live in hope.)
Just how high? According to Telluride AIDS Benefit board member Sandy McLaughlin: "We just got our latest totals: we raised $8020 so far from show last night! Highest amount ever!"
Bravo ladies.
Now on to the Main Event.
[click "Play" for Susan's interview with Amy Goodman]
(ed. note: In the podcast Susan closes with "See you on Saturday." The event is Sunday morning)
kicker: Special "Breakfast with Amy" at the Sheridan Chop House before talk
The idea behind Amy Goodman's whirlwind tour of Colorado is to help community radio stations such as Telluride's KOTOfm raise critical funds and public awareness as Congress flaps its jaw about whether to completely to pull the rug out from under public media and defund NPR, PBS – and by extension, KOTO.
Sunday, March 6, 10 a.m., KOTO community radio hosts Amy, the award-winning host of the daily internationally broadcast radio and TV program, "Democracy Now!", syndicated columnist and author. She is here to talk about threats to public media. Join her to stand up to the madness.
Prior to her talk at The Palm, the historic Sheridan Opera House, in conjunction with KOTO, offers a special "Breakfast with Amy," 8:30 – 10 a.m. That opportunity includes a meet and greet, breakfast buffet, copy of Amy's latest book, Breaking the Sound Barrier, and reserved seating at The Palm.
Hockney prints at TGFA
Telluride's First Thursday Art Walk is a monthly meet-and-greet, an invitation to locals and guests to find out more about Telluride's vibrant cultural scene. Art venues on or near Main Street (Colorado Avenue), as well as retail outlets stay open on that special night late until 8 p.m. Participating restaurants, including The Cosmopolitan, La Cocina de Luz, La Marmotte, The Llama, The New Sheridan Chop House and Pescado, offer Art Walk specials.
Thursday, March 3, is the last Art Walk of the winter season. We suggest the following line of march:
by Jim Bedford
The Nugget Theatre in beautiful downtown Telluride has two great movies on the bill for the week of Friday, March 4 through Thursday, March 10, 2011.
How about THE KING'S SPEECH (R) winning all those Academy Awards last Sunday? And most of those guys were here in Telluride for the film festival last September!
Joining the KING this week at the Nugget will be JUST GO WITH IT (PG-13), with Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston and Nicole Kidman.
See the Nugget website for trailers and reviews, and below for movietimes.
Any time guitar phenom Charlie Hunter shows up in Telluride, the producers have to shoehorn his fans into the room.
The Telluride Jazz Celebration welcomes Charlie Hunter back to town for two encore concerts, Friday, March 4 and Saturday, March 5, at The Llama, where he performs with his trio: Eric Kalb (Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings and John Scofield) on drums and John Ellis on sax, bass clarinet, and Wurlitzer. The concert will be streamed live, part of the Telluride Jazz Celebration's Live from the Llama webcasts to give music lovers from around the world a chance to enjoy concerts emanating from one of Telluride’s premier live music venues.
Sponsored by the Telluride Council for the Arts and Humanities, the last First Thursday Art Walk of the winter season 2011 happens this Thursday, March 3. At the Ah Haa School for the Arts, 300 South Townsend, the spotlight is on Telluride local, painter Ron Patterson and his show, "Black & White in Colors."
Anyone who looks at a Patterson image is first struck by the riot of color on canvas. But color is not the point. Color is in the service of what is the point: relationships. Relationships with pets, with the natural world, with others. And because the relationships Ron depicts tend to be joyful, so are the colors: reds, purples, yellows and oranges dominate, lifting the more somber blues and restful greens.
