The Sacramento Ballet’s second annual Tapas and Tutus fundraiser was a great mix of music , dance and food. It all took place at the Center at Twenty Three Hundred on Wednesday. Great food, drinks and a terrific atmosphere helped with the fundraising and auctioning event to benefit the Sacramento Ballet. The organization is coming to the end of its 57th season and continues to entertain, educate and inspire young and old alike. The Sacramento Ballet continues to bring notoriety to the city as they have become a nationally renowned dance company. The Sacramento community was invited to participate in raising needed funds that bring the wonderful world of dance to various venues and sta

Second Saturday on May 12 saw an increase in the number of people attending art galleries, vendor bazaars, restaurants and various other events in Sacramento. Warmer weather brought more people outdoors to experience art, music and community. One event in particular used the whole day to celebrate the addition of 2,000 square feet of studio space to the Nicholas Wray Photography Studio. Wray is a Sacramento photographer who took the opportunity to thank family and friends for their Kickstarter contributions that helped with the expansion project. An already existing 1,500 square foot studio was also converted to an artist and small business work space called Sacramento Space. The st

A Pop Up Boutique drew several hundred visitors to their event during May’s Second Saturday. Luxe Hair Lounge + Day Spa gathered several designers to a showcase celebration at its Midtown location. POP Boutique celebrated a grand opening for Sacramento’s first Pop Up Boutique. Invited designers included Tiana Vega Collection, Love by Janelle Cardenas, Samuel Parkinson, Nelli Rosh, Maisha Bahati and Haute Baubles. Musical guests drew many passer-bys to the event with live DJ music by Soul Puncherz. Once visitors were drawn in by the music they stayed to enjoy the designs of local talent. Luxe Salon & Spa also offered complementary consultations and provided delicious refreshments. The

The second Concerts in the Park show of this year was held amidst another record breaking attendance crowd at Cesar Chavez Plaza. Three bands performed on stage while DJ Whores was featured. Once Horseneck took the stage they gave a preview of what music would be like for the evening. Raw, energetic rock was delivered and the audience loved it. Their Facebook page states their influence as being “alcohol and other awesome sh*t” and if that was the case on Friday they showcased some amazing influence. One of my favorite Sacramento bands is Lite Brite and they were at Cesar Chavez Park once again to deliver some basic hard core rock Lite Brite are like transformers on stage. The def

In preparation for Sacramento’s International Academy of Design and Technology (IADT) annual Imagine Fashion Show the school held their final fitting day. Several designers and models attended the fitting on Friday, May 11. During the final fitting designers put  finishing touches on their designs. At this time several models had dropped out of the event because of various reasons and new castings were going through their initial fittings as well. One of the models at the event was Jereen Diaz who is a Sacramento model and will be modeling for Erika Diaz (no relation). I asked the model a few questionas about her fashion work. Tell me a little about yourself and your interest in the f

SeaWorld San Diego brought an array of animals to the capitol on its annual trip to Sacramento on Thursday. On a busy day at the capitol, hundreds of school kids, teachers, parents, visitors and lawmakers passed by the exhibit to view what SeaWorld had on display. The park visits Sacramento once a year so students can see the new exhibits. “We come up from SeaWorld San Diego once a year to display animals that we have in all our different parks and to talk about our newest summer attraction,” government relations director Corrine Brindley said. “This year it’s Manta, which a stingray exhibit where you can see, touch and feed them.” The new attraction sounded thrilling. Brindley descri

Davis residents were invited to participate in a flashmob-style dance with “Dance Dance Davis” on Wednesday evening. The event site was kept secret until the actual event took place at Davis’ Central Park. The flashmob dance was held during the Davis Farmers Market. Central Park in Davis hosts the weekly Farmers Market and Picnic in the Park every Wednesday in the spring and summer, this year from March 21 to Oct. 24. Jenny Lynn & Her Real Gone Daddies performed Wednesday for the all-ages crowd. With their brand of rockabilly and bluegrass music, they had several people dancing near the stage. “Dance Dance Davis,” is a community project presented by the UC Davis Institute for Explorati

Several students from the International Academy of Design & Technology (IADT) participated in a fashion show at the Arden Fair Mall. The fashion show was part of the Susan G. Komen Foundation Race for the Cure in-person registration event held at the Arden Fair Mall. In-person registration started on the first floor in front of Nordstrom on May 5 and will continue until May 11. Registration will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The 2012 Komen Sacramento Valley Race for the Cure will take place on May 12 at Cal Expo. The event raises critical funds and breast cancer awareness. Race for the Cure will also celebrate survivors and honor those who have lost their battle. Mail in registration h

The Friday night summer concerts series returned to Cesar Chavez Plaza. Concerts in the Park returned for the first time without promoter Jerry Perry hosting the event. The music played on Friday, May 4 continues to be as entertaining as ever. Just like Fiesta en la Calle did last year this year’s CIP includes a DJ on site. DJ Shaun Slaughter supplied great music for those in attendance. Slaughter, writes and produces music under D.A.M.B., and also performed at the Sacramento Electronic Music Festival Saturday night. Concerts in the Park began on May 4 and runs every Friday until July 27. Many of last year’s bands return to the venue. Another noticeable difference this year is that

The third annual Sacramento Electronic Music Festival swarmed into Harlow’s and the Momo Lounge this weekend. From Thursday to Saturday, tremendous pulsating music attracted an overwhelming crowd to Midtown. Three nights of great music brought over three dozen premier entertainers to the stages. The festival had been in the works for months, and the promoters worked feverishly to bring a great lineup of electronic artists for each evening. Co-creators Adam Saake and Clay Nutting brought together great talent to perform this year. Although Thursday night’s crowd started off small, it grew quite rapidly as the evening progressed. Doors to the venue opened at 7 p.m. and performers took

The Niello Company and Premier Concours Promotions put together an elegant display of classic automobiles that also benefited the 2012 March of Dimes March for Babies walk. The Niello Concours at the Capitol participated in the fundraising event on Saturday, April 28. The March of Dimes March for Babies event raises funds to give hope to more than half a million babies born prematurely each year. Money raised supports community programs that help mothers have healthy, full-term babies. It also helps research to identify problems that threaten infants. March for Babies has raised more than $2 billion since 1970. Thousands of walkers, volunteers, community organizations and entertainers s

Most of us think of art as something done on canvas. On Friday, April 20 Monica Gibson Constancio, in her own way, used children’s wear as her canvass to debut a beautiful line full of artistic creations with vibrant colors. “Kidz Art for Kids Clothes” was held at Creative Vera Studio located at 1200 S Street. FUSE Apparel and Possibility Publishing & Entertainment (T2PS) presented the event attended by guests of all ages creating a fun family atmosphere. Most of the children appeared to be less than 10 years old and had energy to burn. Several art stations were set up at the studio and children worked on their own to create their masterpieces. Artist Raphael Delgado helped children wit

The Sacramento State Fashion Association (SFA) showcased a wonderful array of fashion for the “Retro Reinvention Fashion Show.” The event was held at the University Union Ballroom on Saturday, April 14. Student designers showcased some beautiful, practical and innovative outfits. Proceeds from the event went to Shriners Hospital for Children. Shriners is one of the largest and busiest hospitals in our health care system. The hospital treats children with burns, as well as a host of orthopaedic and neuromusculoskeletal conditions and spinal cord injuries. Every member of their staff is focused on improving children’s quality of life. Fashion from 10 talented designers thrilled the audien

Sacramento’s International Academy of Design and Technology (IADT) will present their fifth annual Imagine Showcase “Design Expo 2012” on Friday June 22 at the Hilton Arden West Hotel. A model casting call, coordinated by Magnum Opus Events, was held on Saturday, March 31 at IADT located at 2450 Del Paso Road. The casting call was held on a rainy day and designers sat at several tables to select models for the fashion show. Maverick Photography documented the event. Several designers were able to select their models but perhaps because of the rain not enough models showed to have a complete selection. Magnum Opus and IADT worked together to recruit available models. Two fittings and

 Sacramento Fashion Week held an Appreciation Party and Industry Mixer at Lounge ON20 on Thursday April 12. The mixer was attended by designers, photographers, models, volunteers and organizers involved with Sacramento Fashion Week. The evening allowed members of the Sacramento fashion industry to mingle and celebrate the success of Sacramento Fashion Week. The sixth annual Sacramento Fashion Week sold out both designer events held at the Elks Tower Ballroom on February 24 and 25. The mixer gave closure to a successful 2012 Sacramento Fashion Week production.  

April’s “Verse on the Vine” featured the talent of Cynthia Linville. Linville teaches writing at Sacramento State and was on hand to treat guests to several of her poems. The event took place on Wednesday, April 11 in Folsom. The Petra Vineyard wine tasting room is located within the Sutter Street Art Gallery. Guests at the monthly poetry readings have the opportunity to enjoy wines from this fine vineyard and enjoy poetry readings. Folsom’s Sutter Street Art Gallery is located at 627 Sutter Street in Historic Folsom. Lining the walls of the Sutter Street Art Gallery was art from various artists. Poets at the event were able to use the colorful tapestry of local artists as their backdr

This Friday, April 13 La Raza Galería Posada presents Martha Toledo in concert at Time Tested Books. This highly requested return concert of Oaxacan singer Martha Toledo will be held at Time Tested Books located at 1114 21st Street. The Galería is holding several concerts off site this spring until their new center opens later in the year in Miller Park. The radiant Mexican singer returns to Sacramento accompanied by superb guitarist José Roberto. Both artists played at the Galería Posada last September and left a lasting impression. Toledo is an internationally recognized performer whose commanding presence embodies the sensibility and majesty of the Oaxacan culture. Toledo is a Zapo

About three dozen guests attended the Clement Charles Events presentation of “Scotch and Sushi - The Sexy Pairing II” on Friday April 6. The event was sponsored and hosted by The Urban Hive to benefit the Sacramento Art History Consortium (SAHC). Although scotch and sushi sounds like an odd combination it ended being a great and delicious pairing. Guest enjoyed wine and scotch donated by Classic Wines of California. Music by Clemon Charles further enhanced the sensory experience of the evening. The talented musician provided soothing music for guests to enjoy. The Barbados native provided an acoustic set that included favorite cover songs such as “Can't Help Falling in Love”, “Sitting o

Saturday’s rainy day kept many people indoors. Several hundred people however gathered at Southside Park in Sacramento to celebrate Cesar Chavez Day. Marchers braved the rain as they marched from Southside Park’s to Cesar Chavez Plaza and back. On Saturday, March 31 marchers of all ages commemorated Cesar Chavez Day a state recognized holiday. The 12th annual march continues to be held in Sacramento rain or shine. The march began at 10 in the morning with several speakers, entertainers and live music performers on hand to keep the spectators’ spirits alive as rain poured down at Southside Park. Aztec dancers led the procession and their enthusiasm was not dampened as many marched an

The Sacramento Kings faced off against the San Antonio Spurs in a close game Wednesday night at the Power Balance Pavilion. The Spurs brought their veteran team against the younger Kings and won their sixth game in a row. The Kings currently have four consecutive losses. The game started with Jason Thompson going up against Tim Duncan for the tip-off. Duncan won the jump ball, tipping the ball to Danny Green. After DeMarcus Cousins missed a running jump shot, Duncan answered with a 19-foot jump shot to score the first points of the game. From this point on, the Spurs did not allow the Kings to take a lead for the entire game. The game was exciting for the 13,119 fans in attendance