Christmas show offers plenty of gift ideas
Get those wish lists ready. The Los Padres Artist Guild will present its 32nd annual Christmas show, “The Gifts of Christmas,” at the Abel Maldonado Community Youth Center, 600 South McClelland, in Santa Maria on Nov. 28, 29, and 30. The catered reception runs from 7 to 10 p.m. on Friday, while the show continues Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Find fine art and handmade crafts, including paintings, photography, sculptures, jewelry, ceramics, and Christmas ornaments. Part of the show’s proceeds will support art student scholarships, and there will be prize drawings for artwork. Admission is free. For more information, visit lospadresartistguild.com or call Tina Porter at 937-6295. Get ready for Christmas with Cactus
Christmas Eve isn’t just tough on last-minute shoppers. In the second show of the Santa Maria Civic Theatre’s current season, A Christmas Cactus, private investigator Cactus O’Riley gets the holiday blues. Trying to lure her secretary Fred away from his protective mother, dodging the affections of Deputy D.A. Windsor, and considering closing her business, Cactus has enough on her plate in this Christmas comedy. Adding to the mess are two fugitives who burst into her office looking for justice, a dead detective named Jake Marley, and Fred’s mother, who arrives to take Fred home, but decides to stay, thinking the whole situation is a staged murder mystery. During the fray, Cactus solves mysteries, delivers small miracles, and takes a second chance on love and sleuthing.
The play was written by Eliot Byerrum and directed by Steve Chambers. A Christmas Cactus shows Nov. 21, 22, 28, and 29, and Dec. 5, 6, 12, and 13. All performances start at 8 p.m. All tickets are $12.
For reservations, call 922-4442 or visit www.smct.org.
Essential Worker exhibit promotes dialog
Service jobs are often thankless—until now. The Santa Barbara County Arts Commission presents The Essential Worker, a photographic exhibition that focuses on workers necessary for a thriving community. The subjects come from the trades and services industries, and their tasks include preparing meals, keeping the population safe, cleaning up, and tending gardens.
Curated by Brett Leigh Dicks, the show features work from tri-county photographers including Nell Campbell, Patricia Clarke, Kate Connell, Bob DeBris, Cathy Gregg, Ian McKaig, Larry Mills, Barbara Parmet, Matthew Straka, and Paul Wellman.
The Essential Worker will show through Feb. 13 at the Betteravia Building, 511 E. Lakeside in Santa Maria.
The exhibition was inspired by the career waitress photographs of artist Candacy Taylor, shown in her Making Connections: Career Waitresses of San Francisco exhibition.
Arts Editor Shelly Cone compiles Arts Briefs. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 20-27, 2008.