The Shins (with opening act Gardens & Villa) played Monday night at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts at UC Davis. The show was the last of series of four concerts in Davis in April produced by the Bay Area's Another Planet Entertainment that I started calling "mini-Coachella," since the headlining bands (and many of the openers) also played that desert mega-festival the last two weekends: Explosions In The Sky at the Mondavi, Bon Iver at Freeborn Hall, and Florence + the Machine at the Mondavi. Other recent Coachella stopovers in the region include fIREHOSE at Harlow's, The Buzzcocks at Ace of Spades, Givers at Harlow's, and Mazzy Star at Harlow's. The Shins are touring to suppo

Audience members sat on the edge of their seats during a multitude of spectacles known as Circus Oz's show "Steampowered." Almost 1,000 people from all backgrounds and ages, filled the Mondavi Center on Sunday to watch the world-renown, Australia-based Circus Oz. The light rock music, fog and the costumed performers who were interacting with the audience on stage and within the crowd, set the mood for what would be a two-hour, high-energy rock-n-roll adventure of acrobatics, death-defying feats and irreverent humor . The families that made up the audience sat in anticipation of the stage-contained show. Some performers mingled with the crowd before the show, while another played with gu

Fun for all ages, every child or child-at-heart will enter a fantastical Victorian Era where top hats and petticoats are mixed with contemporary elements such as human pyramids and juggling, during the two hour, high-energy, extravaganza of dazzling acrobatics, death-defying feats, irreverent humor and rock-n-roll also known as Circus Oz. The world renown, Australia-based circus is performing at the Mondavi Center in Davis this weekend. The show "Steampowered" is animal-free and performed by 13 people, one of which is a rigger (person whose job is very heavy lifting), all of whom juggle between different jobs within the chaos of the show, such as being part of the live band, performing a

On Sunday morning at the University of California, Davis Mondavi Center, Kevin O’Connor, Slater Penney, Christine Germain and Emily Leap led two free workshops on rope climbing, juggling, building human pyramids and using the trapeze. Each 90-minute workshop accommodated 60 very lucky participants ranging from age 4 to adult. More than 300 people could not be accommodated. Kevin O’Connor, an MFA choreography candidate and graduate of the National Circus School of Montreal, was the event’s organizer. O’Connor invited three other trained professionals to lead the four simultaneous workshops sponsored by the new UC Davis Institute for Exploration in Theatre, Dance and Performance. The morn

Just moments after Wilco’s enigmatic guitarist Nels Cline had peeled the paint off the walls inside UC Davis' Mondavi Center with a little psychedelic freakout on "Impossible Germany," front man Jeff Tweedy pulled out the line of the night: "You know, something just occurred to me - the guy yelling 'Free Bird!' might help explain the pepper spray incident." Ohhh, too soon? Tweedy asked that too, amidst the smattering of "ohhh's" and groans that were peppered (zing!) in with the laughter and the applause - although there seemed to be a resounding agreement that a little aerosol Tabasco to the face would be an appropriate response for a guy who apparently still thinks it's cool or funny t

Did you ever want to be in the circus, swinging around on ropes and juggling? The UC Davis Mondavi Center is hosting three free workshops Feb. 5 where families are invited to learn some basic circus skills. “They’ll learn to climb a rope, hang from a rope and do aerial work,” said 32-year-old master’s student Kevin O’Connor, who is one of two artists who will teach the workshops. “There will be juggling, too.” O’Connor is using the workshop as a way to explore how the Mondavi Center can be used to bring people in for creative energy that can then be returned to the outside community, a part of his master’s coursework. Other skills taught in the workshop will include making human pyramid

Rock journs dream about interviewing guys that have the mystique of Jeff Tweedy. So why not try and steal a few hundred seconds on the phone with one of rock's most intriguing (living) front men? Because it would have been met with about the same response I repeatedly got in my pre-teen years when sending those letters with requests for a dinner date to Jennifer Love Hewitt, c/o Producers of "Party of Five." Crickets. In principle, Jeff Tweedy wouldn't be the kind of guy to scoff or turn his nose up at anyone who wanted an interview - that's not his style. There is no visible penthouse or caviar in his songwriting, his performance persona, or in the man himself - it's pretty much all ba

Low lights and a sultry combination of magenta, fuchsia and violet lighting provided the ambiance for the evening. A glance around the room showed an audience of seasoned listeners: a mature, diverse crowd of jazz enthusiasts. At center stage, donning a shimmering purple sequin dress and fishnet stockings stood the quartet's leader, Tia Fuller. The Tia Fuller Quartet starred in a four-day run at the UC Davis Mondavi Center Wednesday through Saturday, sponsored by the Capital Public Radio Studio Jazz Series. Fuller emits a raw charisma, sassiness, an uncanny edginess and outright star quality onstage. She picked up her saxophone and began to play her first set. The opener "Decisive Steps,

Tia Fuller and the Fuller Quartet are scheduled to perform at the UC Davis Mondavi Center tonight through Saturday, with daily show times at 8 p.m. Tickets range from $19 to $38. The group’s recent accolades include the chart-topping album “Decisive Steps,” ranked No. 1 and touting the nomination for best jazz album in Jazz Week. Fuller made time in her demanding schedule to speak with The SacPress to give audiences a glimpse into the heart and soul of this jazz sensation. Fuller's passion for music is literally “in her blood” — the gifted saxophonist hails from a family of musicians. She said it is this personal connection that is the source for her inspiration. She is a musician with

The Crocker Art Museum will present “Dreams,” the visually stunning film from Academy Award-winning director Akira Kurosawa, on Thursday, Dec. 1 at 6:30 p.m. Tickets include Museum admission and are $6 for museum members and $12 for nonmembers. Comprised of eight separate vignettes inspired from actual dreams of the world-renowned filmmaker, “Dreams” is a collection of fantastic and evocative stories, separate in narrative, but intertwined with themes of nature and spirituality, life and death, and peace and war. Born in early-20th-century Japan, Kurosawa made his international directorial debut in 1950 and went on to receive numerous accolades throughout Asia and the U.S., including an

Jonathan Franzen, National Book Award-winning author, acquaintance of Pres. Barack Obama and face of the August 2010 cover of Time magazine next to the caption “Great American Author,” proved to the audience at the UC Davis Mondavi Center Saturday night that he is human. Franzen stepped up to the podium and pulled several sheets of paper out of his briefcase. After rearranging some of these sheets, pausing to find a water bottle, and finally beginning to read from the sheets word for word, it became clear that the critically and commercially successful author was nervous to speak in front of a live audience. “This would be a lot easier if I was doing a reading,” Franzen said. The talk

National Book Award-winning author Jonathan Franzen will give a talk on the process of fiction writing on Saturday, Oct. 8 at the UC Davis Mondavi Center. Since 1988, Franzen has published four novels and two works of nonfiction. His first novel, “The Twenty-Seventh City,” has been described by critics and Franzen himself as a work along the lines of the postmodernists of the 1960s and ‘70s. Although not receiving the acclaim his twenty-first century novels have garnered, it cemented him as someone to look out for in the literary world. His next novel, “Strong Motion,” which came out in 1992, is a social critique framed by a family’s struggles to get along and understand one another. A

Here are some of the many music events happening in the Sacramento area this week. For more detailed information on these events and many more go to www.eMusiConnect.com. Sacramento Area Concerts & Music Events Friday, September 16th: Big & Rich - Gretchen Wilson at Thunder Valley Casino Resort. Concert at 8PM. Tickets are $35.00 - $65.00. Saturday, September 17th: KSFM 102.5 presents Tamale Festival at Cesar Chavez Park on 10th & J Street in Sacramento will feature music from Royalty & Sol Peligro. 11AM-5PM/$5. Saturday, September 17th: Rootstock Festival at Sacramento Horseman's Club on 3200 Longview DR. in Sacramento will feature Harley White Jr. Orchestra - Pleasant Valley Boys -

What could be more refreshing on a hot July night than a nice, cool martini? For a thousand fans at the Mondavi Center in Davis last night, the perfect martini was pink. Crisp and cool, elegant and sophisticated, Pink Martini was fresh and fun and funky. Pink Martini is a “small orchestra” from Portland which manages to produce a sound both wildly exotic and comfortably accessible to their diverse audiences. The ensemble of talented musicians produces a repertoire spanning several continents, a few of centuries and a baker’s dozen of genres. Ravel’s “Bolero” led off the program, starting with some hand drums, string bass and Pansy Chang’s beautiful cello. As the piece built and expanded

Here are some of the many music events happening in the Sacramento area this week. For more detailed information on these events and many more go to www.eMusiConnect.com. Sacramento Area Concerts & Music Events Defending The Caveman at Cosmopolitan Cabaret on 1000 K Street in Sacramento. Continues WED-SUN. Show times are at 8PM or 7:30PM with some 2PM matinees. Tickets are $33.00 - $48.00. Friday, June 24th: Friday Night Concerts in the Park will feature Mumbo Gumbo & Los Blazing Hangovers at Cesar Chavez Plaza at 10 & J Street in Sacramento. 5PM/Free Saturday, June 25th and Sunday, June 26th: Foothills Music Festival at Gibson Ranch Park with Two Tone Steiny, Cream of Clapton, Sacred

Trust me, fellow Sactowners…in about six or seven weeks, we’re going to be yearning for this. It’s June 5, and in what should have been our first full official weekend of summer, everyone seems to be deadlocked in collective melancholy over the “WTF!” of late season rains (for these purposes, “WTF” will be officially dubbed as “weather that fails”). We will get our sun. We will get our heat. And it’s summer, which means, we will get our shows. Here’s a look at some of the summer’s can’t miss shows in Sacramento. Cheers! Lyle Lovett and John Hiatt – You can say whatever you want about Lyle Lovett, like his ballyhooed relationship with Julia Roberts or the fact that he bears a slight rese

Patrons of the arts had the chance of a lifetime on Wednesday to experience one of the greats, singer Tony Bennett. UC Davis Mondavi Center executive director Don Roth welcomed spectators, who were dressed in their best, and the blue velvet curtain rose as if revealing royalty. The show began with Antonia Bennett, a jazzy redhead who was so vibrant and whose voice was so rich, I can only expect that we will see more of Tony Bennett’s vivacious daughter in the future. Antonia began her set with “You’re a Lucky Guy,” and dedicated it to her father, standing in the wing. Following the short opening set, the four-piece band of piano, guitar, bass and trap set transitioned seamlessly to the m

Here are some of the many music events happening in the Sacramento area this week. For more detailed information on these events and many more go to www.eMusiConnect.com. Sacramento Area Concerts & Music Events A Grand Night For Singing at Cosmopolitan Cabaret on 1000 K Street in Sacramento. Continues WED-SUN. Show times are at 8PM or 7:30PM with some 2PM matinees. Tickets are $33.00 - $48.00. Friday Night Concerts In The Park at Cesar Chavez Plaza on 10th & J Street in Sacramento will feature Tatooed Love Dogs - Aaron King & The Imperials - Wahnderlust. 5:30PM - 9PM. Free/Beer Garden 21+ Saturday, May 7th: JAMMIES Evening of Classical Music at Mondavi Center Jackson Hall on UC Davis C

David Sedaris approached his appearance at the UC Davis Mondavi Center like a typical book-reading tour stop. Never mind he was in the 1,800-seat Jackson Hall versus a bookstore. Still, Sedaris created the same sense of rapport with the sold-out house that he would in a smaller setting. Sedaris is good at this. He is a very popular contributor to National Public Radio, and a lot of his success on NPR can be attributed to how well he connects with his audience. After a technical glitch — which was fixed by alerting an audience member with hearing loss that they could not both use their hearing aid and the theater listening device without blasting the rest of the audience and Sedaris with

“Beyond Tango,” pianist Pablo Zielger’s 17-song performance, fused the sharp sexiness of tango music with the jaunty improvisation of jazz to create an enlivened and engaging musical experience at the Mondavi Center on Friday. Zielger began performing classical music at age 14 in his hometown of Buenos Aires, Argentina. In the 1960s, Zielger’s career made the leap to jazz music. Inspired by both classical and jazz compositions, as well as classic tango rhythms, Zielger formed his Quartet for New Tango in 1990. The Mondavi Center’s 1801-seat Jackson Hall was nearly full for the performance, accommodating all ages of music lovers, from the young family to my left to the college-aged women