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1. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: BHS grad returns for Stars concert

   By Camille Gavin

   Wednesday, Jun 19 2013 11:41 AM

   New York-based singer-songwriter Emily Nicholas has a strong connection to Bakersfield in terms of friends, family and local theater.

   And for me and many other local residents, it's been a joy to see the Bakersfield High School graduate grow into a standout performer with a unique style.

   Nicholas will perform back-to-back concerts at Stars on Sunday. A few words of warning, however: Don't put off buying tickets. The first show, at 4 p.m., is nearly sold out, and Nicholas said tickets for the 7:30 performance are going fast. Also, though Stars is a dinner theater, no meals will be served at either performance but beverages and appetizers can be purchased separately.

   Unlike her appearance last summer at The Empty Space with Emily...

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2. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: 'Charity' doesn't require big spenders

   Charity Hope Valentine -- the full name of the lead character in Neil Simon's "Sweet Charity" -- pretty well sums up the reason she keeps falling in love with men who eventually jilt her. "She always believes she's finding that one true...
3. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: Get your golden ticket now

   Few books are considered classics until years after their first printing. Roald Dahl's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is the happy exception. This magical story about a little boy from a poor family who finds a golden ticket inside a...
4. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: Start spreading the news ...

   One look at the title of Stars' new production tips you off to the content of this revue that also has a slender story line. "My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra," opening on Friday, is a recap -- mostly in song -- of the singer's...
5. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: CSUB students take on work of Chekhov

   One reason I admire the Russian writer Anton Chekhov is his ability to present life as it is, not as we might wish it to be. In "The Cherry Orchard," which opens Thursday in Cal State Bakersfield's Dore Theater, Chekhov is masterful in...
6. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: Be lured by 'The Nerd,' a zany, quirky comedy

   Quirky characters are a key element in a successful comedy and that seems to be central to Kevin Ganger's motivation for directing "The Nerd." Ganger describes the play that opens Friday at The Empty Space as "a straight-up laugh-out-loud...
7. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: CSUB pumped about oil art

   Last week I had the good fortune to talk to Ernest Daetwyler about his 12-foot-high sculpture made from 24 used oil drilling pipes that will be placed near the Science III building on the Cal State Bakersfield campus. A slender fellow who...
9. 

   CAMILLE GAVIN: Younger takes gallery back from Arts Council

   From the time it opened nearly 10 years ago, the Younger Gallery has been operated on a rent-free basis by the Arts Council of Kern. Yet in the last few years exhibits have been shown on a sporadic basis and potential visitors have...
10. 

    CAMILLE GAVIN: Car culture turns to art culture

    If you're too young to know what a genuine 1940s-era hot rod looks like, visit the "The Road Show" exhibit at the Madigan Gallery and you'll find out. The hoodless roadster is part of an exhibition featuring work created by the faculty...
11. 

    CAMILLE GAVIN: Find a perch at BC for ‘Birds’

    Bakersfield College’s outdoor production of “The Birds” has little, if any, connection to the Alfred Hitchcock suspense film with the same title. Far from it, actually, since it’s a comedy written in 441 BC by a Greek playwright named...
12. 

    CAMILLE GAVIN: How farce can they go at Stars?

    Director Mark Price says he's had exceptional luck in casting "The Fox on the Fairway," which opens Friday at Stars. "It's more of a farce than a comedy," he said. "Once you have actors who know (the acting) has to be overdone -- and know...
13. 

    CAMILLE GAVIN: Writin' -- and ropin' -- for him

    Branding calves may seem like an odd side job for a Hollywood screenwriter, but that's what Jim Beard was doing in Glennville recently. Even so, wrestling with livestock is almost second nature for the Bakersfield native. "I come home...
14. 

    CAMILLE GAVIN: Public art that speaks volumes

    Tree Hugger Project sculptor Wiktor Szostalo has a keen sense of humor that pops up in his conversations as well as his artwork. During his visit here last week as the guest of Nicole Saint-John and Robert Crewdson, he spoke to a group of...