Events that have not been canceled. Cancellations are ongoing, so please check individual events for updates.

 

 

 

 

 

 

ART

 

“Wintermission” - a show between shows, and features selected works by Gallery Artists designed to refresh and warm even the longest, darkest winter days - runs through March 4. Reflecting a wide range of styles, prices, motifs and media, the show continues the mission of presenting the best of the best of more than 100 East Bay artists.  Also on hand is a wide-ranging juried selection of locally created fine crafts and jewelry. All 2-D works are available for sale or rent through an exclusive “No Regrets” rental program. Free, open to the public. Valley Art Gallery: 1661 Botelho Drive, Suite 110, Walnut Creek, www.valleyartgallery.org; (925) 935-4311 or email us at valleyartgallery@gmail.com.

 

Lamorinda Arts Alliance Announces the exhibit “Tiny But Mighty: Honoring RBG” which will feature abstract and representational 2D artwork that is bright, bold and powerful, just like Ruth Bader Ginsburg.  This show will include mixed media, collage, monotype, oil and cold wax medium, and paintings in watercolor, oil and acrylic.  LAA member Ruth Stanton curated the show. Pat Calabro, a Pacheco resident, was selected as the featured artist.  Her digital acrylic collages are bright bold and full of intensity - so much intensity that she must tone down areas to make places for the eye to rest.  Pat exhibits her work throughout the Bay Area and as far away as Ghent, Belgium. This free exhibit runs through Feb. 26.

 

Virtual Art Gallery at Wilder. The Lamorinda Arts Council is pleased to present Rashmi Rajesh’s 12 watercolor and oil paintings to ring in the New Year. Rajesh, of San Ramon, is a self-taught artist who was drawing pencil sketches at a very young age in India. As an adult she relied on her drawing skills again as she pursued first acrylics, then oil paint and watercolors. You’ll find florals, landscapes, abstracts, and still life works in her show. To keep her work fresh, she experiments with different techniques and subject matter. She hopes her work sparks some kind of connection for viewers because for her, connecting people together is one of the beautiful qualities of art. View the online gallery of artwork images and the artist’s video at www.LamorindaARTS.org/WIlder; visit the artist’s website at www.rashmisartcarte.com.

 

Virtual Art Gallery at the Orinda Library. To welcome in the 2021 New Year, join us for a peek at rare and protected animals of Africa. Maggie Boscoe, David Fleisig, Pam Hall, Jeffrey Halliday and Maureen Rosati-Wee present photographs taken on safari in national parks. The list includes Hwange, Zambia, Kafue, Botswana and Okavango Delta parks. Their exhibit includes images and a video of exotic animals, birds and landscapes encountered on their travels. Boscoe quotes Karen Blixen, author of “Out of Africa,” as to what it’s like to be on safari: “There is something about safari life that makes you forget all your sorrows and feel as if you have drunk half a bottle of champagne - bubbling over with heartfelt gratitude for being alive.” Go to https://lamorindaarts.org/

online-galleries for this unique look at another part of the world.

 

 

MUSIC

 

Looking for something to lift our spirits? Want to have some fun? The Diablo Women’s Chorale has the answer: Come Sing With Us! Auditions are open to all female voice parts via Zoom on Monday, Jan. 25, and Monday, Feb. 1, by appointment only. For information on membership and auditions, contact Nancy Hickman, Membership Chair, at (925) 899-5050 or hickmandg@gmail.com. 

DiabloWomensChorale.org/join-us. Audition events are free and held via Zoom due to COVID.

 

Diablo Ballet presents the second program of its 27th Season, “Balanchine and Beyond,” featuring four ballets, including the Act III Wedding Scene from the timeless fairytale, “Sleeping Beauty.” Virtual tickets are being sold one per household for $30 if purchased before Feb. 10 or $35 if after, through the Lesher Center for the Arts by calling (925) 943-7469 or online at lesherartscenter.org. For additional information, visit diabloballet.org or call (925) 943-1775.

 

Gold Coast Chamber Players continue their virtual concerts in 2021 with an ambitious series of six new programs. The 2020 Fall Series, Bach Shorts, featured leading Bay Area cellists in an intimate exploration of Bach’s Cello Suites. Main Stage Concerts, which begins this month, celebrates love and diversity. Virtual links remain available for one week following the concert date. Cello/bass duo 2LOW from the San Francisco Symphony begins the 2021 Main Stage Concerts with music by Handel, Bottesini and Rossini. Special guests, soprano Isabel Yang and pianist Keisuke Nakagoshi provide the “plus” for the title, 2LOW+ on Sunday, Jan. 24 at 4 p.m. Purchase online at www.GCCPmusic.com or by calling (925) 283-3728.

 

THEATER

 

Orinda Starlight Village Players presents “Pinocchio.” The Orinda Starlight Village Players has released a video of the 2015 production of Pinocchio. We’re sure you’re missing our live performances in the park and we hope this presentation from our 2015 season will, in some way, compensate for this. The free video is available at www.orsvp.org throughout January. See story on page A6.

 

OTHER

 

British friends and Anglophiles! Join us at Genuine Goodness Cafe on Jan. 24 from noon to 4 p.m. for another Great British Pop Up! Reserve your items at the link: www.greatbritishpopupshop.com/ Genuine Goodness, 21 Orinda Way, Ste. G, Orinda, (925) 317-3348

 

KPFA Radio 94.1 FM presents Elizabeth Kolbert & Mark Hertsgaard: Under a White Sky on Thursday, Feb. 11, 5 to 6:30 p.m., at Online webinar, 1929 Martin Luther King Jr Way, Berkeley. Elizabeth Kolbert and Mark Hertsgaard will discuss Kolbert’s new book, “Under a White Sky, The Nature of the Future,” and answer audience questions. Cost: $20 one admission, $35 admission + book.  For more info see www.eventbrite.com/e/elizabeth-

kolbert-mark-hertsgaard-under-a-

white-sky-nature-of-future-tickets-

131627494379.

 

OUSD Kinder/TK Registration in February 2021. Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarten registration for children entering an Orinda public school in August 2021 will be open Feb. 1-4. On those dates, parents may register their child online at www.orindaschools.org. Kindergarten students must be at least 5 years of age on or before Sept. 1, 2021. A child is eligible for Transitional Kindergarten if their fifth birthday is between Sept. 2 and Dec. 2, 2021. Additional information regarding registration is available at the district website: www.orindaschools.org.

 

GARDEN

 

The Montelindo Garden Club February meeting begins Friday, Feb. 19 at 10 a.m. on Zoom. Everyone is welcome. Presentation:  Edible Landscaping.  Speaker:  Patricia St. John, who loves to design with edibles!  She has been designing residential gardens for the past 25 years, on both sides of the bay. Her work has received international design awards and been featured in Better Homes and Gardens, Sunset Magazine, S.F. Chronicle, and seven books on garden design. She has taught in the Landscape Horticulture department at Merritt College in Oakland for the past 14 years. To request a Zoom link to attend this meeting, email:  montelindogarden@aol.com