Mountain Views News, Sierra Madre Edition [Pasadena] Saturday, December 10, 2016

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 10, 2016 

On the Marquee: 

Notes from the Sierra MadrePlayhouse

Jeff’s Book Pics By Jeff Brown


Rain of Gold by Victor Villasenor 

In Rain of Gold, Victor Villasenor weaves the 
parallel stories of two families and two countries…
bringing us the timeless romance between the 
volatile bootlegger who would 
become his father and the beautiful 
Lupe, his mother–men and women in 
whose lives the real and the fantastical 
exist side by side…and in whose 
hearts the spirit to survive is fueled by 
a family’s unconditional love.This is 
the Hispanic Roots, an all-American 
story of poverty, immigration, 
struggle and success. It focuses on 
three generations of Villaseñor’s 
kin, their spiritual and cultural 
roots in Mexico, their immigration 
to California and their overcoming 
the poverty, prejudice and economic 
exploitation. It is the warm-hearted, 
humorous and tragic, true story of the 
wily, wary, persevering forebears of 
Villaseñor.

All the Gallant Men: An 
American Sailor’s Firsthand 
Account of Pearl Harbor by 
Donald Stratton , Ken Gire 

The first memoir by a U.S.S.Arizona 
survivor: Donald Stratton, one of the 
battleship’s five living heroes, delivers 
an epic,powerful, and “intimate 
eyewitness account of Pearl Harbor and his 
unforgettable return to the fight. At 8:06 a.m. on 
December 7, 1941, Seaman First Class Donald 
Stratton was consumed by an inferno. A million 
pounds of explosives had detonated beneath his 
battle station aboard the USS Arizona, barely 
fifteen minutes into Japan’s surprise attack on 
American forces at Pearl Harbor. Near death 
and burned across two thirds of his body, Don, 
a 19 yr. old Nebraskan who had been steeled by 
the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, summoned 
the will to haul himself hand over hand across a 
rope tethered to a neighboring vessel. 
Forty-five feet below, the harbor’s 
flaming, oil-slick water boiled with 
enemy bullets; all around him the 
world tore itself apart.94 old veteran 
Stratton shares his unforgettable 
personal tale of bravery and survival, 
his harrowing recovery, and his 
inspiring determination to return to 
the fight.Don and four other sailors 
made it safely across the same line 
that morning, a small miracle on a day 
that claimed the lives of 1,177 of their 
Arizona shipmates,approximately 
half the American fatalaties at Pearl 
Harbor. Sent to military hospitals for 
a year, Don refused doctors’ advice 
to amputate his limbs and battled 
to relearn how to walk. The U.S. 
Navy gave him a medical discharge, 
believing he would never again be fit 
for service, but Don had unfinished 
business. In June 1944, he sailed 
back into the teeth of the Pacific War 
on a destroyer, destined for combat 
in the crucial battles of Leyte Gulf, 
Luzon, and Okinawa, thus earning 
the distinction of having been present 
for the opening shots and the final major battle of 
the Second World War.Don, a great-grandfather of 
five and one of five living survivors of the Arizona, 
offers an unprecedentedly intimate reflection on 
the tragedy that drew America into the greatest 
armed conflict in history. All the Gallant Men 
is a book for the ages, one of the most inspiring 
memoirs in recent years.


By Artistic Director, Christian Lebano

 We have a special treat for our patrons – on Sunday, 
December 18 at 7:00 we will be hosting the AlmaNova 
Duo with special guest vocalist Abram Peliakoff in a 
“Classical Christmas Concert”. This marks the first of 
three concerts we have planned through the spring with 
Sierra Madre Music, who just happen to be the AlmaNova 
Duo better known as Jessica Pierce and Almer Imamovic. 

 I was outside the theater one night a few months ago 
when I met a young mom and her son. We got to talking 
and I soon discovered it was Jessica. That led to a meeting 
with Jessica and Almer where we hatched a plan to 
collaborate on all things music at the Playhouse. I have 
been struggling to curate and manage our Music Series 
and now Jessica is going to help me. She and Almer are 
incredibly well-connected in the music scene in Southern 
California and both have wonderful ideas about how to 
broaden what I’ve been trying to build.

 We’ll continue our collaboration with the Colburn 
School – in fact, we have concerts set for January 26 and 
March 26 and hope to schedule a few more. I want to 
build the theater into an acknowledged place to hear 
chamber music and soloists. For those of you who haven’t 
attended a concert at the Playhouse, we are blessed with 
really wonderful acoustics. It really is a little jewel box. I 
hope you will join us as we build this series. I couldn’t be 
more excited for the possibilities. 

 Tickets for the “Classical Christmas Concert” are 
$20 for adults and $15 for youth 21 and under and are 
available for purchase on-line or by calling Mary to make 
a reservation at 626.355.4318.

* * *

“ A Little House Christmas continues until December 
23 with special performances Christmas week. I do hope 
you will plan to see this charming take on these classic 
American stories. Some performances are sold-out 
already. Do get your tickets soon.

* * *

 On Thursday we learned of the dismissal of the actor’s 
suit against Actors Equity Association – the Union of 
Professional Actors and Stage Managers. This means 
our costs will be rising as we now must pay considerably 
more for our talent. We have been reaching out to 
our supporters and donors to make commitments of 
support for the next year – with this decision by the 
Federal Court it is even more important than ever 
that we can look to you to help us afford to continue 
bringing the talented artists that you’ve come to look 
forward to on and off our stage. I hope you will consider 
making a generous gift to SMP and join our Marquee 
Giving Circle. Please help us keep SMP as a vital and 
treasured part of this community. Donations can be 
made by sending a check to the Playhouse at PO Box 
123, SM, 91025 or by contacting me at ArtisticDirector@
SierraMadrePlayhouse.org Your support means 
everything to us. See you in the lobby!

All Things By Jeff Brown

THE GIRAFFE

The giraffe, the tallest land animal, is now at risk 
of extinction, biologists say.Because the giraffe 
population has shrunk nearly 40 percent in just 
30 years, scientists put it on the official watch list 
of threatened and endangered species worldwide, 
calling it “vulnerable.” That’s two steps up the 
danger ladder from its previous designation of 
being a species of least concern. In 1985, there were 
between 151,000 and 163,000 giraffes but in 2015 
the number was down to 97,562, according to the 
International Union for the Conservation of The 
giraffe is the only mammal whose status changed 
on the list this year. Scientists blame habitat loss.
While everyone worries about elephants, Earth has 
four times as many pachyderms as giraffes, said 
Julian Fennessy and Noelle Kumpel, co-chairs of 
the specialty group of biologists that put the giraffe 
on the IUCN Red List. They both called what’s 
happening to giraffes a “silent extinction.”Fennessy 
blamed shrinking living space as the main culprit 
in the declining giraffe population, worsened by 
poaching and disease. People are moving into 
giraffe areas especially in central and eastern Africa. 
Giraffe numbers are plunging most in central and 
eastern Africa and are being offset somewhat by 
increases in southern Africa, he said.


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Call: 626-355-4572

SIERRA MADRE PLAYHOUSE ANNOUNCES 
WINTER/SPRING SEASON FOR 2017

Sierra Madre Playhouse has lined up a stimulating 
season of entertainment for the first half of 2017. 
The schedule follows:

 Jan. 13- Feb. 18: Bee-luther-hatchee. Written by 
Thomas Gibbons. Directed by Saundra McClain. 
Shelita Burns, an African-American editor, 
publishes “Bee-luther-hatchee,” the autobiography 
of a reclusive 72-year-old Black woman named 
Libby Price. Shelita has never met Libby, and when 
the book wins a prestigious award, Shelita decides 
to deliver it to her in person. To her profound 
shock, the actual author of the book is not whom 
Shelita expected. A fascinating and provocative 
look at cultural appropriation and who has the 
right to tell someone’s story.

 March 10- April 22: A Wrinkle in Time. Adapted 
by John Glore. Based on the book by Madeleine 
L’Engel. Directed by Christian Lebano. The classic 
Newberry Medal-winning book brought to life on 
stage in a thrilling adaptation.Follow Meg, Charles, 
Wallace and Calvin as they journey to Camazotz to 
rescue their father with the help of Mrs. Who, Mrs. 
Which and Mrs. Whatsit, and learn the power of 
love and of being true to yourself.

 March 18- April 23. The Belle of Amherst. 
Written by William Luce. Directed by Todd 
Nielsen. Starring Ferrell Marshall. The Belle of 
Amherst is the true story of Emily Dickinson, 
lyrically brought to life through her soulful poetry, 
her real-life letters and her uncanny wit and 
intellect. Enjoy an intimate evening with one of 
America’s greatest poets and through her meet her 
family, friends, menagerie of curious neighbors 
and critics, and the men she loved and lost.

 May 26- June 25. Talley’s Folly. Written by 
Lanford Wilson. Directed by Kiff Scholl. Winner 
of the 1980 Pulitzer Prize, Talley’s Folly is the story 
of one moonlit night in the lives of two unlikely 
sweethearts. It is the Fourth of July in 1944 in 
a dilapidated boathouse on the Talley farm in 
Missouri. A play for anyone who has ever been in 
love.

 Coming in Summer 2017: The Marvelous 
Wonderettes. The hit musical written by Roger 
Bean. Directed by Robert Marra (director of the 
Ovation Award-nominated The 25th Annual 
Putnam County Spelling Bee and Always…Patsy 
Cline).

 Sierra Madre Playhouse Artistic Director: 
Christian Lebano. Managing Director: Estelle 
Campbell.

 Sierra Madre Playhouse is located at 87 W. 
Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, CA 91024. This 
is just east of Pasadena. There is ample free parking 
behind the building. Reservations: (626) 355-4318. 
Online ticketing: www.sierramadreplayhouse.org


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