ART

 

The Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery presents “Refuge,” a two-person exhibit featuring new work by Susan Sharman and Susan Taira. Sharman and Taira both find inspiration – and solace – in nature, translating their personal experience through a variety of mediums. Exhibition runs through Oct. 21. www.jenniferperlmuttergallery.com

 

The award-winning Netflix series, “Stranger Things” has sparked fan art and loyal followers around the globe. Join a fun night of art and atmosphere to celebrate the love of all things “Strange” from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28. Step inside the Sci-fi realm of “The Upside Down” at the Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery, featuring 11 artists from around the Bay Area paying tribute to the characters, sets, and themes of “Stranger Things.” The $10 admission ticket includes entry to this experiential exhibit, plus refreshments, live painting, meet the artists, photo ops, costume contest, raffle prizes, “Strange Art” for sale and other surprises! Purchase at: http://jenniferperlmuttergallery.com/product/strangerartist/.

 

The Moraga Art Gallery presents “Impressions-Expressions,” highlighting Asian-accented jewelry by K. de Groot, enticing light-infused paintings by Carol Tarzier, and a bounty of artistic gifts for the holidays. The exhibit, which also includes work by the gallery’s 13 member artists and several guest artists, runs from Oct. 25 to Jan. 6, with an open reception on Oct. 28. For more information visit www.moragaartgallery.com or call (925) 376-5407.

 

Valley Art Gallery’s new Exhibition “Art, Naturally” runs through Nov. 11. From objects found to impressions visualized, artists have been busy creating the new fall 2017 show of more than 300 works of art for sale or for rent.

 

11th Annual Artisan Faire from 4 to 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 10 at the Orinda Country Club, 315 Camino Sobrante. This popular Faire showcases over 30 talented artists selling their unique and original works in jewelry, ceramics, painting, photography, glass, fiber art, woodwork and clothing plus cosmetics and culinary products. Enjoy complimentary wine tasting and delicious samples of artisan chocolates and food items.

 

MUSIC

 

The Little Fall Music Fest is scheduled from 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21 at the Library Community Hall, Lafayette Library and Learning Center. Enjoy an afternoon of great music and libations, starting with flamenco dancer Melissa Cruz, followed by the bluegrass and blues sounds of Dirty Cello, and finishing with the rousing music hall songs of Brass Farthing. Lafayette Rotary Club will be on hand with barbecue, beer and wine. Cost: $10.

 

Crowden Music Center presents Community Music Day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 22 at Crowden Music Center, 1475 Rose Street, Berkeley. Crowden’s Community Music Day is a free musical carnival, with Instrument petting zoos, San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, face painting, prizes and more. For more info see http://www.crowden.org/concerts-and-events/community-music-day or call (510) 559-6910 or email concerts@crowden.org.

 

Gold Coast Chamber Players concert, ‘Wayfarers’ at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28 in the Lafayette Library Community Hall. Gustav Mahler (arranged by Zakarias Grafilo); Kindertotenlieder; RückertLieder; Lieder eines Fahrenden gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer). Tickets: $45 general; $40 senior (65+); $15 student. Purchase online at www.gcplayers.org or by phone at (925) 283-3728. (See story on page B2.)

 

Songs and Stories to Benefit Terry’s Kids beginning at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 6 in the Orinda Library Auditorium. This evening will raise funds for our Cuban friends in need, as well as support Terry’s Kids music programs in underfunded schools in the Bay Area. Tickets: $35. tmkids.org (925) 285-0996

 

THEATER

 

Town Hall Theatre Company presents “The Song of the Nightingale: A Musical Fairy Tale,” a new pop musical based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, with book, music and lyrics by Min Kahng, directed by Michael Mohammed with music direction by Margaret Halbig. The show runs through Oct. 21. For ticket information and showtimes, visit www.townhalltheatre.com.

 

Saint Mary’s Performing Arts Department presents “ ... and Jesus Moonwalks the Mississippi” by Oakland-based playwright Marcus Gardley. Directed by Ken Prestininzi, the play weaves the Demeter myth and American Civil War into a tapestry of redemption Nov. 1-5 at the LeFevre Theatre, 1928 Saint Mary’s Road, Moraga. Tickets: $15.  For exact times and to purchase tickets see https://www.stmarys-ca.edu/performing-arts.

 

LECTURE & LITERATURE

 

Humanities West Fireside Chat: Norman Sicily at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 24 at the Orinda Library. Join George Hammond of Humanities West to explore Sicily under the Normans where the intense yet prosperous interaction among Norman-Catholic, Byzantine-Orthodox and Arab-Islamic cultures endowed Palermo with great art.

 

SMC Creative Writing Reading Series presents an Evening with Tyehimba Jess, 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, reading followed by a Q&A with Matthew Zapruder at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday Oct. 25 in the Soda Center.

 

KIDS, PARENTS & TEENS

 

Wheel Day from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 21 at Lafayette Orinda Presbyterian Chruch, 49 Knox Drive Lafayette (rain or shine.) Bring the whole family for a day of horn-honking fun. Children can climb, explore, ask questions and have their photo taken with a variety of vehicles! Popcorn and baked goods available for purchase.

 

Orinda Academy will be hosting an open house event for fall 2018 enrollment from 1 to 4 p.m. Oct. 22 and Dec. 9 at 19 Altarinda Rd., Orinda.

 

The annual Lafayette Res Run for Education begins at 8 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 22 in downtown Lafayette. Now celebrating its 25th anniversary, this community fitness event features beautiful scenery, a fast 5-K race, a challenging 10-K course which includes a trip around the Lafayette Reservoir, and a 2 Mile Fun Run/Walk for dogs, walkers and runners of all ages (this one begins at 8:45am). All races start and end at the same location – corner of Mt. Diablo Blvd. and Oak Hill Rd. in downtown Lafayette. Register online www.lafayettechamber.org/resrun.

 

Teen Stress and Student Performance from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25 at Acalanes High School Performing Arts Center. All are invited to a free informative talk sponsored by Acalanes Parents Club given by author Dr. Ben Bernstein, Ph.D., a psychologist and educator specializing in how stress affects performance, including test anxiety. For more information and to register, visit https://benbernstein.eventbrite.com. If you have any questions, please contact Holly Nolan at HollyNolan@comcast.net.

 

Get Your Ghoul On at 4 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 27 in the Orinda Library Garden Room. Just for Teens. Join us for some creepy crafts, gory treats, and bone-chilling activities...if you dare. For grades 6-12.

 

For a fun, safe Halloween event, children and their parents are invited to trick-or-treat on Mt. Diablo Boulevard from Oak Hill Road to Dewing Avenue and in La Fiesta Square from 4-6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27. All participating businesses will display a “Trick-or-Treat Poster” and balloons. Please come in costume to receive a special treat. Don’t forget to bring a trick-or-treat bag.

 

Put on your costume and join Lamorinda Moms and Theatre Square businesses for a morning of free trick-or-treating fun in Theatre Square from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Oct. 28. Bring a friend, all are welcome!

 

Lafayette Youth Commission Haunted House from 5 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 28 and 29; from 5 to 7 p.m. for Not-So Scary - $3; and from 7:30 to 9 p.m. for Very Scary - $5.

 

Trick or Treat with the kids 3 to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 31 at the Rheem Shopping Center in Moraga.

 

Halloween skit in Moraga with the Addams Family from 7 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 31 at 12 Lynwood Place in Moraga. An annual tradition, trick-or-treaters watch a 10-minute show and then get their treats.

 

OTHER

 

Burton Valley Elementary PTA Blood and Bone Marrow Drive from 8:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Friday, Nov. 3 in the BVE Multi-Purpose Room. To schedule your appointment or for more information visit redcrossblood.org (Sponsor Code BURTON) or call 1-800 RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767). Learn more about the bone marrow registry and eligibility at bethematch.org. If you are unable to attend but would like to order a swab kit, go to join.bethematch.org/burton.

 

Luminance Vision Optometry ribbon cutting and opening party will be from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 19 at 3444 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Lafayette.

 

Volunteers will remove Fire Blight - damaged branches from the 104-year-old pear orchard adjacent to Joaquin Moraga Intermediate School in Moraga from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21. The trees are doing better after several years of fire blight removal, treatment with an organic fertilizer last year, and our winter rains. Bring gloves, sunscreen, hats and sturdy shoes. If you have them, bring (labeled with your name) loppers, hand pruners and (especially needed) pole pruners and orchard ladders. For more information, contact Bobbie Preston at (925) 376-8474 or barbarampreston@comcast.net.

 

The big semi-annual book sale sponsored by the Friends of the Moraga Library will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21 at the Moraga Library, 1500 St. Mary’s Road. Books, CD’s, DVD’s of every category will be sold at prices ranging from 25 cents to $4. Beginning at 1 p.m. a bag can be purchased for $5 and filled with all the books it can hold. Come to one of the biggest bargain sales in Lamorinda.

 

Lafayette Reservoir Rim Trail meeting at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 21. Meet in the parking lot out from Lafayette BART’s main entrance. We form carpools to the trailhead. Bring lunch or snacks, water, layered clothing, good walking shoes, sun protection and money to contribute toward gas, and parking. ($3 local). Strenuous with two steep hills, just over 5 miles. Leader: Alison Hill.

 

This is a worldwide celebration of the 200th anniversary of birth of the founder of the Baha’i Faith and the Baha’is of Lamorinda would like to celebrate with all of their friends and neighbors in Lamorinda from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 22 at the Soda Activity Center at Saint Mary’s College, 1928 St. Mary’s Road in Moraga. Everyone is welcome to this free event.

 

Humanities West Fireside Chat: Norman Sicily at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 24, Fireside at the Orinda Library. Join George Hammond of Humanities West to explore Sicily under the Normans where the intense yet prosperous interaction among Norman-Catholic, Byzantine-Orthodox and Arab-Islamic cultures endowed Palermo with great art.

 

Contra Costa Tale Spinners will host a story swap with featured teller, Dana Sherry, who brings folk tales from the heart of the Silk Road alive and transforms historical events into tales of wonder and horror at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26 in Orinda Community Center Room 6. Share, listen, expand your universe.

 

Daughters of the Goddess Womyn’s Temple welcomes womyn and girls of all ages to the Annual Spiral Dance at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27 at the Orinda Masonic Temple, 9 Altarinda Rd. During this multi-cultural ritual, led by Kahuna Leilani, and accompanied by spiritual elders of different traditions, come together to honor and celebrate loved ones who have passed away. Ticket cost is $23 advance by Oct. 23 or $29 at the door. Student and Crone discounts are available in advance. Please bring pictures of your loved ones that have passed to be placed on the Ancestor Altar. Also bring along your drums and rattles for the ceremony.

 

Celebrate the 500th anniversary of The Reformation from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29 at The Holy Shepherd Lutheran Church 433 Moraga Way in Orinda. The “Marty Party” will offer beer tasting with numerous Lamorinda home brewers, bounce house, games, and crafts for kids, apple carving, Oktoberfest-style bratwursts and much more. All proceeds will go to help the victims of the recent North Bay fires.

 

Joaquin Miller Park hike meeting at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1. Meet at the parking lot at the corner of Pleasant Hill Road and Olympic. We form carpools to the trailhead. Bring snacks, water, layered clothing, good walking shoes, sun protection and money to contribute toward gas, and parking. ($3 local). Strenuous with hills, approximately 4.5 miles, and two hours of hiking. Leader: Erwin Johnson. LafayetteHiking@comcast.net

 

Lafayette Juniors 24th Annual Rummage Sale from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 4. Special Early Bird Entrance fee $5 per adult from 7 to 8 a.m. at Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church, 49 Knox Dr., Lafayette. Pre-loved designer clothes, baby and kid clothes, toys, children’s gear, furniture, household goods, and much more. Visit www.lafayettejuniors.org.

 

Discovering Opera: Puccini’s La Rondine presented by Bradford Wade from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9 in the Lafayette Library, Arts and Science Room. An operetta by Puccini? With waltzes? And no one dies? Yes, it’s La Rondine (The Swallow). Lecturer Bradford Wade will give a guided tour of La Rondine, with a description of the plot interspersed with musical examples. This lecture is given in conjunction with Opera San José’s production of La Rondine, Nov. 11-26. Fee: members free; non-members $10.

 

Lamorinda Business Symposium from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 14 at the Soda Center at Saint Mary’s College. A panel discussion on the “Customer Experience – getting back to basics in today’s ever changing retail and business environment.”  Free event for all, but please RSVP to kathe@moragachamber.org as refreshments will be served.

 

SENIORS

 

Lunch n’ Learn: That Elusive Thing Called Sleep, presented by Linda Fodrini-Johnson from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, Oct. 24 at Merrill Gardens Lafayette, 2nd Street at Mt. Diablo Boulevard. Changes in sleep patterns are normal as we get older. It’s a common misconception, however, that sleep needs decline with age. In fact, studies have shown that our sleep needs remain constant throughout adulthood. So, what’s keeping us older adults awake? And what can be done to combat these issues to get a good night’s sleep? Lunch generously provided by Merrill Gardens. Space is limited; RSVP required by Oct. 18: Seniors@LoveLafayette.org or 284-5050.

 

Anne Randolph Physical Therapy Presentation The Art of Balance from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25 in the Cedar Room, Lafayette Community Center. If you are worried about falling or are at risk of falling, you should know about activities that improve balance. Learn how to gain increased balance and avoid the risk of falling.

 

GARDEN

 

The Moraga Garden Club will hold their next meeting at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 19 at the Holy Trinity Church, 1700 School Street, Moraga. The guest speaker will be Linus Eukel, executive director of the John Muir Land Trust. Interested parties are welcome to attend the 9:30 a.m. social hour, 10 a.m. meeting, and the presentation by Eukel immediately following the meeting.

 

Botanical Drawing Workshop at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 9 in the Orinda Library Garden Room. Botanical artist and instructor, Catherine Watters, will introduce you to botanical art and guide you through hands-on exercises to experience the practice of botanical drawing. Materials provided. Space is limited. Register online, by phone or in person at the Orinda Library.