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1. CAMILLE GAVIN: Open for discussion: 'h#sht#g'

   By Camille Gavin

   Wednesday, May 16 2012 06:25 PM

   Visual artists are known for their creativity, so the unusual title of the students' senior thesis show at CSUB should come as no surprise.

   It's called "h#sht#g,"-- pronounced "hashtag"-- and it opens with a reception this evening on campus at the Todd Madigan Gallery. Anyone familiar with Twitter and other social media probably will be familiar with the term hashtag, which is defined as any collection of letters led by a pound sign. For those who prefer to communicate the old-fashioned way, think of it as an acronym designed to start a discussion of a topic or encourage a trend.

   In the case of the CSUB art students, it's meant to open our eyes to a different way of looking at art. Or as curator Joey Kotting puts it: "May they continue to change the way we see things and continue to create trends and new ways to communicate ideas."

   The exhibit includes work by about 25 graduating seniors and includes sculpture, painting, photography, mixed media and video.

   "After four-plus years of studying at CSUB and other colleges, this is a time for us to celebrate their efforts and witness their progress in their chosen fields of study," Kotting said. "We wish them all successful careers."

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2. 

   Puppets for grown-ups on stage at The Empty Space

   "Avenue Q," said director Jason Monroe, is hilarious, relevant and fast-paced, zipping along at just over two hours, including intermission.

3. CAMILLE GAVIN: Silent film, but it won't be quiet

   Organist Bob Salisbury has a personal connection to the composer of the music he'll play to accompany Thursday evening's showing of the silent movie "Wings" at First Presbyterian Church.

4. CAMILLE GAVIN: A good time will be had by y'all

   Oildale is once again the setting for a musical comedy at the Gaslight Melodrama. Last time around it was a rollicking wedding story, so popular that the theater reprised the production on two other occasions.

5. Retirement just a beginning for plein air painter

   A lot of people I know look at retirement not as an end but a beginning. And plein air painter Betty Woollomes is a significant example.

6. Young actors tackle challenging material

   You have to admire Vickie Stricklind and her NOR Junior Theatre actors for taking on a comedy and a tragedy that are worlds apart. Think 1920s Hollywood and ancient Greece -- how distant can you get?

7. REVIEW: Keep ears wide open for 'Evita'

   Overall, Stars production of "Evita" has a lot going for it. In my view, its greatest strengths are stand-out performances by Zachary Gonzalez as Che, and Erika Kern in the title role.

9. CAMILLE GAVIN: Don't keep your distance from 'Evita'

   I find it both encouraging and refreshing when certain members of the local theater community exhibit a spirit of cooperation, something I've been advocating for as long as I've been writing about the arts.

10. CAMILLE GAVIN: Teen piper has highland mojo

    When 14-year-old Linda Snoddy was invited to join the UC Riverside Bagpipe Band, she "was pretty excited."

11. CAMILLE GAVIN: Artist's creation is a real hoot

    In a true tale of how the right kind of trash can become a treasure, Betty Younger has turned several abandoned pieces of metal into a 5-by-5-foot sculpture of a great horned owl.

12. Rhyme and reason to celebrate poetry

    As its name implies, National Poetry Month is meant to be observed across the country. But here in Bakersfield, it's strictly local.

13. CAMILLE GAVIN: Meet 'Millie' at the Harvey

    A winsome love story, daring 1920s flappers, mistaken identities and even hints of white slavery make up the goofy plot of "Thoroughly Modern Millie." Those are some of the elements -- plus plenty of tap dancing -- audiences can expect from the Bakersfield Music Theatre production that opens this weekend at Harvey Auditorium.

14. CAMILLE GAVIN: Bringing black history 'to life'

    The history of black people in this country is one of advancement, but there is no denying that progress has been punctuated with plenty of peaks and valleys along the way in the form of downright cruelty, unjust laws and harsh prejudice.