Mountain Views News          Saturday, January 9, 2016

11

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

FOOD AND DRINK

Mountain Views-News Saturday, January 9, 2016 

PICK 5 FOR SANTA ANITA RACE TRACK

They are off and running at Santa Anita, so where do you dine with all your winnings? 
Here are five places that I really like.

Panda Inn is a mainstay and Father of the Panda 
Express restaurant chain is a full service restaurant 
fresh with white linens and a full bar. No you won’t 
find ducks hanging in the window, but you will find very above average Chinese Food, complete with 
a full bar, you might find trainer John Sheriffs or Hall of Fame Jockey Laffitt Pincay chowing down 
on Orange Flavored Chicken or having a Mai Tai at the bar, bartender Kim is always quick with a 
joke and is the best in the business. I recommend the Won Ton Soup. 3488 E. Foothill Pasadena.

Robin’s Wood Fire BBQ has been called by many as the best BBQ this side of Texas, and I agree, the 
Beef Ribs are meaty and the tri-tip sandwich literally melts in your mouth. Full Bar and open lunch 
and dinner. 395 N. Rosemead Pasadena (626) 351-8885. 

For you steak lovers and I know there are plenty the Derby Restaurant is a must, Choice and Prime 
steaks are offered at this racing and restaurant Institution. Besides the great steaks and chops take 
a few minutes to walk around the restaurant and marvel at all the old pictures and a display case 
located in the front, it hosts many old trophies, boots and ribbons. The owners tell me that George 
Woolf himself made the Derby his home away from home in the early 1930’s and became a partner 
in the restaurant in 1938. 233 E. Huntington Arcadia. 

Something different you 
ask? I have it in Din Tai 
Fung, The San Gabriel 
Valley has a large Asian 
population and this 
restaurant has customers 
waiting in line for their 
Dumplings, I consider this 
the best Dumpling House 
in the area, order the 
Xiao Long Bao, dumpling 
packed with minced pork, 
I order the fresh crab 
meat as a topping, simply 
irresistible, caution you 
may move to Arcadia just 
because of this restaurant, I recommend coming off hours, it can be busy. 1108 S. Baldwin Arcadia.

Nikki C’s just a few minutes from the Race Track has been the meeting place for many winning 
betters, trainers and owners for just short of ten years, I have to say that the Ciaopino is about the 
best in town, full of seafood including, mussels, scallops and crab, a meal in itself, the staff is mostly 
on the friendly side , so after a fun day at the track I often will head over to Nikki C’s, the lighting 
is slightly dark, if they had enough room they’d have a piano bar, get the picture? Locals have been 
coming here for years, and call it their secret spot and home away from home. Well, the secrets out. 
470 S. Rosemead Pasadena. 

Peter Dills Hosts a one Hour TV Show on PBS Los Angeles KLCS 5 PM Sunday. Channel 25 Charter & Channel 
58 ATT /Direct TV you can reach him www.peterdills.com

On the Marquee: Notes from the Sierra Madre Playhouse

TABLE FOR TWO by Peter Dills

thechefknows@yahoo.com

THE CRUNCH TIME

By Artistic Director, Christian Lebano

 By now you must know how much I love 
putting up shows for you, our loyal patrons. It 
just delights me to create theater and Deathtrap 
is filled with so much fun stuff that sometimes I 
can’t believe I am allowed to do this! And I’m 
not alone. Hard to explain the dedication and 
hours of time that so many people are putting 
into mounting this show - from the actors to the 
designers to the producers to all the technicians 
working long hours doing sometimes tedious jobs 
for the thrill of thrilling you!

 This is crunch time for Deathtrap. The set 
is being completed – every day I walk into the 
theater to find another wonderful surprise 
awaiting me – today it was the wallpaper hung. 
Last night was our “Dry Tech” – that’s where 
the Sound and Lighting Designers and the Stage 
Manager and I go through all the cues (the 
technical aspects for each moment, i.e. the car 
door slam and the flickering lights of the fireplace 
which flare up when paper is thrown into it) – 
it’s called a Dry Tech because there are no actors 
present. If there were actors it would be called 
a Wet Tech. Tonight the Costume Designer and 
the Properties Designer (props are anything an 
actor holds in his hands or sits on) will arrive with 
blood to test under the lights and with the actors 
– it is important that it can be applied quickly 
and wash out of the clothing easily. The Fight 
Choreographer was with us on Tuesday for a final 
coaching session on stage – and to drop off his 
loan of daggers, and rapiers, broadswords, maces 
and more that we’ll be using both practically and 
as set dressing. And just before I sat down to 
write this the Composer sent me his final versions 
of the music he has written for the show.

 Saturday it all comes together at the Q2Q as the 
actors learn the timing of all the effects and try 
on their clothes and drink the fake ginger ale (one 
actor is allergic to the real stuff) during a very 
long day at the theater. All of us keeping in mind 
our goal – to scare you, to thrill you, to make you 
laugh, and surprise you and to make Deathtrap 
come to life.

 I’m grateful to each member of the team who is 
working so hard but I have to offer a special thank 
you to Erin Walley, our Assistant Set Designer, 
hired originally as our Properties Designer and 
still doing that job, who when our Set Designer’s 
commitments to the TV show he works on meant 
he wasn’t able to finish the design stepped in – and 
then became our de facto Production Manager 
coordinating all the aspects of the build. If it 
wasn’t for her there would be no show to open. 

 Deathtrap is selling briskly – it opens January 
15 and runs through February 20. This one is 
going to be great fun – don’t miss it. Please visit 
our website at SierraMadrePlayhouse.org or call 
Mary at 626.355.4318 to arrange your purchase. 


Jeff’s Book Pics By Jeff Brown

The Lost Tudor Princess: 
The Life of Lady Margaret 
Douglas by Alison Weir 

Acclaimed historian Alison 
Weir comes the first biography 
of Margaret Douglas, the 
beautiful, cunning niece of 
Henry VIII of England who 
used her sharp intelligence 
and covert power to influence 
the succession after the death 
of Elizabeth I.Royal Tudor 
blood ran in her veins. Her 
mother was a queen, her 
father an earl, and she herself 
was the granddaughter, niece, 
cousin, and grandmother of 
monarchs. Lady Margaret 
Douglas, Countess of Lennox, 
was an important figure in 
Tudor England, yet today, 
while her contemporaries—
Anne Boleyn, Mary, Queen 
of Scots, Elizabeth I—have 
achieved celebrity status, she 
is largely forgotten. Margaret’s life was steeped in 
intrigue, drama, and tragedy—from her auspicious 
birth in 1530 to her parents’ bitter divorce, from 
her ill-fated love affairs to her appointment as 
lady-in-waiting for four of Henry’s six wives. In an 
age when women were expected to stay out of the 
political arena, alluring and tempestuous Margaret 
helped orchestrate one of the most notorious 
marriages of the sixteenth century: that of her son 
Lord Darnley to Mary, Queen of Scots. Margaret 
defiantly warred with two queens—Mary, and 
Elizabeth of England—and was instrumental in 
securing the Stuart ascension to the throne of 
England for her grandson, James VI.The life of 
Margaret Douglas spans five reigns and provides 
many missing links between the Tudor and Stuart 
dynasties. Drawing on decades of research and 
myriad original sources—including many of 
Margaret’s surviving letters—Alison Weir brings 
this captivating character out of the shadows and 
presents a strong, capable woman who operated 
effectively and fearlessly at the very highest levels 
of power.

The Road to Little 
Dribbling: Adventures of 
an American in Britain 
(Notes From a Small 
Island #2) by Bill Bryson

The hilarious and loving 
sequel to a hilarious and 
loving classic of travel writing: 
Notes from a Small Island, 
Bill Bryson’s valentine to his 
adopted country of England.
In 1995 Bill Bryson got into 
his car and took a weeks-long 
farewell motoring trip about 
England before moving his 
family back to the United 
States. The book about that 
trip, Notes from a Small 
Island, is uproarious and 
endlessly endearing, one of the 
most acute and affectionate 
portrayals of England in all 
its glorious eccentricity ever 
written. Two decades later, 
he set out again to rediscover 
that country, and the result is The Road to Little 
Dribbling. Nothing is funnier than Bill Bryson on 
the road—prepare for the total joy and multiple 
episodes of unseemly laughter.

Old Glory: A Voyage Down the Mississippi 
by Jonathan Raban

The author of Bad Land realizes a lifelong dream as 
he navigates the waters of the Mississippi River in 
a spartan sixteen-foot motorboat, producing yet 
another masterpiece of contemporary American 
travel writing. In the course of his voyage, Raban 
records the mercurial caprices of the river and the 
astonishingly varied lives of the people who live 
along its banks. Whether he is fishing for walleye 
or hunting coon, discussing theology in Prairie 
Du Chien or race relations in Memphis, he is an 
expert observer of the heartyland’s estrangement 
from America’s capitals ot power and culture, 
and its helpless nostalgia for its lost past. Witty, 
elegaic, and magnificently erudite, Old Glory is 
as filled with strong currents as the Mississippi 
itself.


SEAN’S SHAMELESS 

REVIEWS:

BEST NEW SONGS TO KICK OFF 2016

By Sean Kayden

Old Man Canyon – “Hollow Tree” – Vancouver 
singer/songwriter Jett Pace crafted the indie rock 
outfit’s much-anticipated debut LP, “Delirium”. It’s 
due out on January 15th. One of the tracks is “Hollow 
Tree,” a shimmery, vintage synth driven masterpiece. 
It majestically soars with beautiful arrangements 
and the overall sounding vibe is the closest thing 
to heaven I’ve heard in quite some time. The fresh 
approach includes a solid melody and complex 
textures that are guided by Pace’s enriching and lilt 
vocals. With a penchant for deep pop sensibilities, 
discreet synthesizers, and reflective lyrics, Old Man 
Canyon’s debut record may be a gem among a sea of 
pearls. 

Matt Kivel – “Violets” – “Janus,” the third solo 
album from ex-Princeton member Matt Kivel debuts 
next month. The recent single, “Violets” is a joyous, 
meditative, and fragile. At the same token, it is both 
sharp and more intricate than your normal indie-folk 
track. Kivel has proven to be a solid storyteller over 
the course of his first two records, “Double Exposure” 
and “Days of Being Wild”. His words do more than 
just pull you in; they have a propensity of sticking 
with you long after the songs conclude. However, it’s 
Kivel’s solo guitar arrangements that leave a deep 
imprint on one’s own mind and heart. The sound is 
so wisely put together that each note, each layer feels 
just right at every moment. 

Cullen Omori – “Cinnamon” - Former Smith 
Westerns front man Cullen Omori has just released 
the first single, “Cinnamon” off his solo debut “New 
Misery,” which is out March 18 via Sub Pop. The 
inspiration for the record derived from listening to 
Top 40 radio during his long shifts at his medical 
supply company day job. The strange hybrid of 
sorts works effectively well for his new single. It’s 
his most pop orientated song to date as a musician 
with glimmering, dreamy guitars that swirl around 
and around. It’s a sunny pop tunes amidst a cold 
and dreary winter. It definitely has all the essentials 
to be a huge success. If this is any indication of what 
the record may sound like, Cullen Omori may find 
himself becoming much more known in the coming 
months. 

Mothers – “It Hurts Until It Doesn’t” – With an 
array of bands featuring edgy female singers was 
all the rage for the past two years or so, Kristine 
Leschper and her band Mothers may become the 
most talked about indie band of them all in 2016. 
An untitled debut LP is planned for this year and 
one of the definite cuts will be “It Hurts Until It 
Doesn’t,” a painstakingly beautiful and shattered 
piece of work. With lyrics like, “I don’t like 
myself when I’m awake” and “I felt your love for 
a little while but never had the guts to give myself 
up,” you know you’ll be traveling into dark and 
personal terrains. However, the Athens, Georgia 
foursome does more than just mourn and display 
catharsis. Their utterly original and nebulous 
sound is riveting as they come off as hardened 
pros. Leschper’s harrowing vocals spark a balance 
of vibrancy and complexity. There’s something 
profound and meaningful behind not only her 
words, but also the craftsmanship of this 5 and . 
minute song. The multi-layered rock gem sounds 
like nothing like you have ever heard before and 
that’s what you need looking forward into 2016.

Jeff’s History Corner By Jeff Brown

The last sugar plantation in Hawaii is set to close at 
the end of 2016. Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. A&B 
announced Wednesday that this year will be the last 
sugar harvest on its 36,000-acre sugar plantation 
on Maui. The sugar plantation incurred a $30 
million agribusiness operating loss in 2015, and 
continuing significant losses have been forecast.The 
675 people employed by its subsidiary, Hawaiian 
Commercial & Sugar Company (HC&S), will be 
laid off progressively starting in March as their 
responsibilities come to an end. The company will 
then move toward more diversified agriculture, such 
as energy crops, agroforestry, livestock, diversified 
food crops, and orchard crops.”This announcement 
marks an end to plantation agriculture that shaped 
our state’s history,” Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) 
told NBC News. “Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar 
Company has been a source of economic stability 
for the County of Maui, pioneered technical 
innovation in the field of agriculture, and served 
as a catalyst to a labor movement that improved 
working conditions for Hawaii families.”A&B 
was founded 145 years ago by descendants of 
Protestant missionaries. Sugar became big business 
in 1876 when plantation owners were allowed to 
export sugar to the United States duty-free. White 
plantation owners played a large part in the 1893 
U.S.-backed illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian 
monarchy and the subsequent 1898 annexation of 
Hawaii as an American territory. In 1993, President 
Bill Clinton acknowledged and apologized for the 
U.S. role in the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian 
monarchy.Plantation owners were also responsible 
for bringing large numbers of workers to Hawaii 
from China, Japan, Korea, Philippines, and 
Portugal, shaping the unique ethnic makeup of 
the islands.”Much of the state’s population would 
not be in Hawaii today, myself included, if our 
grandparents or great-grandparents had not had the 
opportunity to work on the sugar plantations,” said 
Stanley M. Kuriyama, A&B executive chairman, 
in the announcement.The sugar industry began 
to decline after the islands became subject to U.S. 
labor laws,and cheaper labor was found in India, 
South America and the Caribbean. According to 
Civil Beat, A&B also faces continuing litigation 
over air pollution from the burning of 400 acres of 
sugar cane every week from March to November, 
and over Native Hawaiian water rights. But in a 
statement following the announcement, Hawaii 
Governor David Ige said that A&B’s move toward 
diversified agriculture was “a golden opportunity 
for the state to focus on renewable energy and food 
security.”


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com