Mountain Views News, Sierra Madre Edition [Pasadena] Saturday, December 17, 2016

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 17, 2016 

On the Marquee: 

Notes from the Sierra MadrePlayhouse

Jeff’s Book Pics By Jeff Brown

A Good Man, A Great Dad and 
a Loving Husband: Everyman’s 
Guide to a Brilliant Life by Bradley 
Brown 

“In this book you will find common-sense 
approaches to help you to be a good man, 
a great dad and a loving husband. I have 
invested fifty-five years into researching 
this book. Like any good scientist, trial 
and error have played a major part in my 
findings. Wisdom is about learning from 
what we have done or what others before 
us have experienced, and evolving as a 
result. It is my hope that the wisdom I share 
with you here will make your journey 
towards a brilliant life a straighter road, 
allowing you to get there faster”(Bradley 
Brown).A wonderful book for raising 
kids,getting that job and having the life 
you want . Availiable at Amazon.com and 
Bradleybrown.com.au

Boy’s Life by Robert McCammon

In me are the memories of a boy’s life, 
spent in that realm of enchantments. 
These are the things I want to tell you.... 
Robert McCammon delivers “a tour 
de force of storytelling” (BookPage) 
in his award-winning masterpiece, a 
novel of Southern boyhood, growing 
up in the 1960s, that reaches far beyond 
that evocative landscape to touch 
readers universally. Boy’s Life is a richly 
imagined, spellbinding portrait of the 
magical worldview of the young -- and 
of innocence lost. Zephyr, Alabama, is an 
idyllic hometown for eleven-year-old Cory Mackenson -- 
a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends 
are forever. Then, one cold spring morning, Cory and his 
father witness a car plunge into a lake -- and a desperate 
rescue attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible, 
haunting vision of death. As Cory struggles to understand 
his father’s pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of 
good and evil that surround him. From an ancient mystic 
who can hear the dead and bewitch the living, to a violent 
clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront 
the secrets that hide in the shadows of his 
hometown -- for his father’s sanity and 
his own life hang in the balance.One of 
my alltime favorite books.

Being Aware of Being Aware by 
Rupert Spira 

Everybody is aware, all seven billion of 
us. We are aware of thoughts, feelings, 
sensations, and perceptions. All people 
share the experience of being aware, but 
relatively few people are aware that they 
are aware. Most people’s lives consist of a 
flow of thoughts, images, ideas, feelings, 
sensations, sights, sounds, and so on. 
Very few people ask, “What is it that 
knows this flow of thoughts, feelings, 
and perceptions? With what am I 
aware of my experience?”The knowing 
of our being—or rather, awareness’s 
knowing of its own being in us—is 
our primary experience, our most 
fundamental and intimate experience. 
It is in this experience that all the peace, 
happiness, and love we have ever longed 
for reside. The happiness we have 
sought for so long outside of ourselves, 
in situations, objects, and relationships, 
turns out to be always present, always 
available, in the simple knowing of 
our own being as it is.The knowing of 
our own being shines in each one of 
us as the experience “I am” or “I am 
aware,” or simply as the thought “I.” 
Because this simplest, most obvious, 
most familiar, and intimate experience is to the mind 
not a thing, or nothing, it is overlooked or forgotten 
by the vast majority of humanity. The overlooking of 
our own being is the root cause of all unhappiness and, 
therefore, the root cause of our search for happiness. 
What is the nature of this experience of being aware? 
The contemplations in this collection will lead readers 
toward their own experiential understanding of that 
which we all call “I.”


SANTA CAME EARLY THIS YEAR!

By Artistic Director, Christian Lebano

Santa has already been very good to us this year! 
We got word this week that the Les and Sheri Biller 
Foundation will be giving SMP it’s largest-ever 
Foundation grant for our upcoming production 
of Bee-luther-hatchee - $15,000! The Biller 
Foundation supports “socially-charged theater” in 
Washington State and in LA County. We originally 
submitted a Letter of Intent and then were invited 
to submit a full application.

 Diane Siegel, who we are so lucky works with us, 
came up with wonderful programming to support 
the play which deals with cultural appropriation – 
who owns someone’s story and who has the right 
to tell it. The application was long and probing – 
wanting to know about our organization, our staff, 
the show’s budget and our theater’s budget. I had 
help pulling together all of the elements from Diane, 
Estelle Campbell, our Managing Director, and 
Louise Calaway, our accountant. I felt very good 
about what we submitted, and honestly thought we 
had a shot at being funded. In my dreams I thought 
that $5,000 would be a reasonable number and that 
would almost support all of the exciting outreach 
programs that Diane had designed. That we were 
funded for three times that amount was so exciting 
and validating, especially because when the Grant’s 
Manager called to let us know she described how 
strong our application was and how “timely, on-
target, and important” this play is.

 Bee-luther-hatchee has been a passion project 
for me for several years. To have it supported in 
this way is so validating. But here is the bow on 
top of Santa’s present – the Biller Foundation only 
funded four theaters this year: ACT in Seattle (a 
major regional theater), CTG downtown (that’s 
the Taper), the Geffen Playhouse, AND us! Pretty 
esteemed company for our little theater and another 
example of how SMP is being thought of in the 
world.

 Rehearsals for the show are going really well. I 
can’t wait to share it with you when we open on 
January 13, 2017. Tickets are on-sale now. I do 
hope you’ll come.

* * *

 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. 

 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.

 As always we do it for you, our loyal audiences. 
Come celebrate with us! See you in the lobby!


All Things By Jeff Brown

HOW THE FAMOUS TREES OF ALTADENA’S CHRISTMAS 
TREE LANE WERE SAVED IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS!

When a story in the newspaper ran in August about 
an all-out effort to save dozens of the 150 deodar 
cedar trees that make up Christmas Tree Lane,the 
gifts started dropping like manna from heaven.
Green King Co., McWane International and Toro 
donated about $3,700 worth of irrigation spikes, 
micro hoses, pipes and water meters that kept the 
trees alive, as well as the oldest, outdoor Christmas 
display in the world.Last Saturday night, the trees 
brought over from the western Himalayas in 1885 
by John P. Woodbury, the founder of Altadena, lit up 
the faces of thousands of children and adults during 
the 96th annual Christmas Tree Lane Lighting 
Ceremony.Trees that were turning brown from 
the severe drought and punishing summer heat 
are sprouting new shoots and turning green. And 
thanks to a ton of new volunteers, strings of 14,000 
colorful bulbs — some of them the new, less-energy 
intensive LED variety — shine from the bows of 
these famous trees that for about a mile, create a 
Southern California-style wintery wonderland 
where families in cars ride under a canopy of 
towering pine trees draped in colorful holiday 
lights.This year was especially difficult for the 
Christmas Tree Lane Association, a nonprofit made 
up of volunteers. After spending about $7,000 this 
summer on fancy irrigation methods that brought 
water to the stressed trees, and another $7,000 for 
new lights and other expenses, the nonprofit had 
nearly run out of cash.However various companies 
donated $15,000 to help with the trees.

 The lights of Christmas Tree Lane (Santa Rosa 
Avenue between Woodbury Road and Altadena 
Drive) in Altadena are lit every night from dusk 
until midnight through Jan. 2. They are turned 
on for one night Jan. 6 to Jan. 7 for the Christian 
orthodox churches that celebrate Christmas on the 
Feast of the Epiphany.


NUTS AND BOLTS OF ACTING TECHNIQUE 

A FOUR MONTH INTENSIVE 

Sundays, January 15 - May 7 (No class Easter, April 16) 

2:00pm - 4:00pm 

Zydeco Casting Studios 

626-355-4572 

Nuts and Bolts begins at the beginning and proceeds in a clear and detailed step by step manner... clarifying your 
understanding of the process of acting... giving you a “tool kit” to own and use... providing you with a solid foundation 
from which to work. This will always be the most important step an actor can take on the path to a rewarding career.

Career Launching Pad

ZERO TO SPEED...in 6 weeks 

LEARN THE PROCESS

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COMMERCIAL AUDITION 
TECHNIQUES... 

CAMERA TECHNIQUE... 

PROFESSIONAL TOOLS... 

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Be completely ready and... 

LAUNCH AT THE AGENT SHOWCASE! 

Can we brag? Over 80% of our graduates have signed with top industry 
agents. If working as an actor is your goal...this class was designed to meet it!

COMMERCIALS A-Z 

Sundays, January 8 - Febuary 12 

5:00pm to 9:00pm 

Zydeco Casting Studios 

Call: 626-355-4572


SEAN’S SHAMELESS REVIEWS: 

By Sean Kayden


WHAT TO SEE, WHAT TO SKIP

SEE: NOCTURNAL 
AMINALS - If you’re 
seeking something a 
bit more ominous and 
more adult oriented at 
the theater, make your way over to the new Jake 
Gyllenhaal and Amy Adams film, “Nocturnal 
Animals.” The second picture by fashion designer-
turned-filmmaker Tom Ford, “Nocturnal Animals” 
inventively intertwines three storylines into one 
all-encompassing narrative that packs a harrowing 
punch. The focal plot focuses on Susan (Adams), a 
high-end art dealer stuck in an unhappy second 
marriage in which her husband (Armie Hammer) 
is clearly cheating on her. One day, she randomly 
receives a package from her ex-husband Edward 
(Gyllenhaal) containing a manuscript called 
“Nocturnal Animals” — a reference made by Edward 
when they were married to describe Susan’s failure to 
sleep well. 

 Edward has dedicated the soon to be published 
novel to Susan. However, this isn’t a love story, more 
of a tragic one indeed. It tells a haunting noir-style 
anecdote of a man named Tony (also played by 
Gyllenhaal) who is driving across an isolated Texas 
highway in the wee hours of the night with his wife 
and teen daughter when three lowlifes viciously 
force them off the road. These nasty men kidnap 
Tony’s wife and daughter while deserting him, 
and as Tony initiates his frantic quest to uncover 
their whereabouts and pursue justice, Susan finds 
herself flashing back to the diverged feelings of 
her tumultuous past with Edward. Susan requests 
to meet up with Edward after not seeing him for 
nearly 19 years. When agreed to meet, both Susan’s 
imaginary and actual worlds come to a head-on 
crash.

 “Nocturnal” is masterful in both mood and style 
and underneath it all there is the beating of a dark 
heart. Along with Adams and Gyllenhaal, you have 
the always-intense Michael Shannon (“Take Shelter,” 
“Midnight Special”) and a terrific performance 
by Aaron Taylor-Johnson (“Savages,” “Kickass”). 
Both actors are equally great to their better-known 
counterparts. In fact, Aaron Taylor-Johnson was 
nominated for best supporting actor in a drama from 
the Golden Globes. This, so far, has been the best of 
the “Oscar caliber” films this holiday season. Grade: 
A-.

 SKIP: MANCHESTER BY THE SEA - 
“Manchester By The Sea” debuted way back in 
January at the Sundance Film Festival. It stars Casey 
Affleck as Lee Chandler, a brooding man working 
as a maintenance worker in Boston. When he finds 
out his older brother suffers a tragedy, he heads 
back home north of the city to discover he’s been 
named guardian to his 16-year old nephew. With 
the intensity of losing his only sibling and severe 
reservations about raising a teenager, Chandler’s 
return to the past re-opens a horrifying tragedy 
of his very own. Written and directed by Kenneth 
Lonergan (“You Can Count On Me,” “Margaret”), 
the movie is beautiful composed and sharply acted. 
However, at nearly two and a half hours long and 
a dreary protagonist, the film really has no clear 
direction or destination. The plot line is no better 
than something episodic television and squanders 
the talents of supporting characters Michelle 
Williams and Kyle Chandler. 

 This movie is being hailed as a masterpiece 
by most top critics and for the love of God, I can’t 
see why. Sure, its subject matter is heavy as well as 
showcasing a strong lead performance by Affleck. 
Still, the dialogue choices in some scenes are baffling, 
the nephew played by newcomer Lucas Hedges gives 
a green, if often times, uneven performance. The 
film is easily 30-40 minutes too long and feels like 
things are reiterated or shown again to get the point 
across. Kind of drag through the second half, I never 
felt connected to these characters or their actions. 
Maybe I’m in the minority here, but I am utterly 
confused of all the best picture talk for this one. 
If you want something depressing, manipulative 
in trying to convey a certain emotion, and brings 
little to the table to truly resonate with, then look 
no further than “Manchester By The Sea,” another 
super hyped up Sundance film that falls utterly flat 
when it finally landed in theaters. Grade: C


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