 |
|
|
|
|
Saratoga Sampler
Six-year wait to join Saratoga men's club
By Mary Ann Cook
AMAZING TRAVELER: A mention of Carolyn Tanner in a column in 1998 produced an email from Texas saying Tanner was in a long lost branch of their family and they would love to hear from her. "We are SO excited to have run across this article," said the missive. When I called Tanner the Texas relative had already connected with her.
"All these years I had no idea," said Tanner. "I'm amazed and thrilled." And I thought these columns ended up wrapping fish or adorning the bottom of bird cages. This one somehow found its way to Texas and produced results. Actually, the Internet can take most of the credit.
The column talked about the fact that Carolyn Tanner is a direct descendent of a Revolutionary War soldier named James Tinsley. The amazing part is that she is his great-granddaughter. Only two generations separate her from her Revolutionary War hero antecedent.
That would lead one to believe that Tanner must be at least 150 years old, when actually she is a mere 78. When the Texas relative looked up James Tinsley on the Internet the column about Tanner was listed.
POETIC JUSTICE: Judith Sutton's poetry class at Saratoga High held a reading recently to wrap up the school year and both poetry and presentation were so polished and finely wrought that people are still talking about it.
Sutton, as you know, ran Valley Institute of Theater Arts for some years at the Mountain Winery, and enlisted the help of her former partner in VITA, Bill Peck, to coach the fledgling poets with their dramatic readings. (Incidentally, Peck will teach special ed classes at Saratoga High next fall.)
Setting for the poetry reading gave it a romantic panache, what with a grove of redwoods in the school quad serving as backdrop and lights strung throughout. Recorded music played in the background as the lights of the day lowered. The theme of the reading was Dusk to Darkness.
A cake described as a block-long was offered at the end of the program. We can understand parents raving, but two who weren't parents came away dazzled. Kerstin Stone and Louise Webb, for example. "Those poems should be published," enthused Stone, who said she was moved to tears.
Chapbooks of the poetry were presented to parents as gifts. Stone and Webb had earlier been part of the gathering at Ed Porter's, where they plunked down their final money for the Sister City trip to Italy in September.
BOHMLER UPDATE: Not many composers can lay claim to being a one-man redevelopment impetus, but composer Craig Bohmler, who lives in Los Gatos, can. Martinez is building a new outdoor theater to house the musical he composed last year, Mountain Days, the John Muir Musical. Martinez is undergoing a renaissance and the theater is the centerpiece of that revitalization.
Muir lived in Martinez and Bohmler was commissioned to compose a musical outdoor extravaganza last year in honor of the conservationist. The play will be performed in the new theater July 12-22. The response was incredible, says Bohmler, about the city's ability to raise the money to construct the theater.
Now Mountain Days can continue to play to new audiences. "The mayor cut the ribbon and we planted 1,700 trees up there last weekend," Bohmler enthuses. A Muir touch right there.
Another Bohmler piece in the works is Gretel and Hansel, a deconstructed fairy tale, to be produced at Shakespeare Santa Cruz from Thanksgiving weekend to Dec. 18. It's a pantomime, (not to be confused with miming) told on two levels--bawdy, yet suitable for the whole family. Stock characters include the evil stepmother played in drag.
Meanwhile, his Enter the Guardsman continues in repertory at Ashland through Oct. 27. And will be produced in San Diego from Sept. 8 through October at the Old Globe. "Over the moon" is his life at the moment.
SCHOLARSHIPS & AWARDS: Saratoga Rotary awarded $1,000 scholarships to these high school students: Rebecca Yang and Kate Pisani of Saratoga High and Alma Sahmanovit and Helen Yi of Prospect High. Plaques and $50 were awarded to these elementary school students:
David Luoh and Meg Stevens of Redwood Middle School, creative arts awards; and to Joelle Strickland of St. Andrews, Garrett Deiter and Alana Riparbelli of Sacred Heart, citizenship awards.
NEW OFFICERS: Saratoga Men's Club new officers for the coming year are Ed Porter, president; Marlon Smith, vice president; and Steven Rice, secretary/treasurer. Board members are John T. Armstrong, Carl Dardona, George Hutchinson, Brad Wyatt and Armon Mills.
What amazing about the exclusive men's club is that there's a waiting list of 79 and a six-eight year waiting period. Someone has to die or move before a new entrant comes aboard. After reading Bobos in Paradise I thought those days were over. Oldest member, longevity-wise, is Leon Aubrey, a member since 1937.
|
|
|
|
Saratoga, California Since 1955
