Entertainment Briefs - Aug. 7

Outdoors comes to life in Lakes Area Music Festival

The Lakes Area Music Festival family concert brings a bit of northwoods splendor to its next concert titled "Outdoor Adventure" scheduled at 3 p.m. Sunday; and then the second concert, scheduled at 7 p.m. Wednesday, is predicted to be one of the year's standout concerts, organizers say. The concert is titled: "The Four Seasons" featuring soloists from the Minnesota Orchestra.

All performances will take place in Tornstrom Auditorium in Brainerd and are free.

"Outdoor Adventure" includes works by composers like George Gershwin, as well as familiar favorites such as "Flight of the Bumblebee" and the nocturne from Mendelssohn's "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

In addition to the festival's professional musicians, participants in this year's Explore! Music children's day camp also will be featured. More than 50 local youth grades one through five will join program director, Alexander Peña and his team in a week of hands-on music and other arts activities, culminating with Sunday's concert.

Festival veterans and Minnesota Orchestra violinists Jonathan Magness and David Brubaker will join the Lakes Area Music Festival's chamber orchestra Wednesday in two musical depictions of the four seasons - one by Vivaldi and a second by Argentinian tango composer Astor Piazzolla. Recent Juilliard graduates Chloe Fedor and Jeremy Rhizor also will be featured. The concert begins at 7 p.m. with a pre-concert lecture by the Layton James of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra starting at 6:30 p.m.

Now in its sixth season, the Lakes Area Music Festival is an annual summer series attracting more than 100 of the country's leading orchestral and vocal performers. Festival performances, which include chamber music, symphonic repertoire and a fully staged opera. The organization also offers a wide variety of educational and social opportunities for the audience and community at large.

For complete information go to www.lakesareamusic.org .

Auditions for fall CLC Production

Auditions for the Central Lakes College (CLC) Theatre production of Larry Shue's "The Foreigner" will be 7 p.m. Aug. 26-27 in the Chalberg Theatre on the Brainerd campus. "The Foreigner" is a modern comedy classic. It is set in a hunting lodge in the backwoods of Georgia, a place often visited by Froggy LeSeur, a British demolition expert who trains soldiers at a nearby army base. This time Froggy has brought along his friend Charlie, a pathologically shy Londoner overcome with the fear of making conversation with strangers. To help Charlie cope, Froggy tells all at the lodge that Charlie is from an unnamed, exotic foreign country and cannot understand English.

What follows is a madcap series of situations where Charlie overhears far more than he should about others' private lives, about the sinister schemes of a local redneck and the plans of the local Klan to take over the lodge for their own nefarious uses. With the help of some unlikely heroes, Charlie devises a method of scaring off the bad guys that is an iconic moment in modern theatre comedy.

The play calls for a cast of five men, ages late teens to mid-50's, two women, ages early 20's to mid-60's and several extras.

Auditions will consist of readings from the script; no advance preparation is required. Previous acting experience is not required. Rehearsals will begin on Sept. 2 and will be held five nights a week. Performances are Oct. 2-4 and 9-11.

For more information, contact the director, Patrick Spradlin at pspradlin@clcmn.edu or at 855-8255.

A Blue Moon over Gregory Park

The Blue Moon Jazz Quintet will perform at 7 p.m. today in the bandstand in Gregory Park in Brainerd.

The quintet is a lakes area instrumental combo band featuring Chris Fogderud playing trumpet; Mike Sommerness on the saxophone; Jim Olsen playing guitar; and Nick Schwen on drums; and Greg Breen playing bass. Their specialty is music for all ages from swing standards to blues and funk. Their style of music is filled with a bright sound. This band has performed in the bandstand in past years and has been invited back because of their unique style and crowd pleasing performances.

Bandstand concerts are free and open to the public. Bring a lawn chair or blanket. Rain-out site is The Center, 803 Kingwood St., Brainerd. If the concert is moved indoors, signs will be posted on the bandstand and it will be announced on WJJY radio.

Concerts in the park are a collaboration between Brainerd Parks and Recreation Department and The Center. Funding for the concerts has been provided by community donations and a grant from the Five Wings Arts Council.

Hager to perform in organ series

BAXTER - The Lakes Area Summer Organ Recital Series will present Ken Hager in a theater organ recital at noon Wednesday at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Baxter.

Hager will be performing a medley "On a Wonderful Day Like Today/Where is Love/Anniversary Waltz/California, Here I Come," "Cantabile on Chartres," by Richard Purvis assisted by Frank Milo on alto saxophone, "If You Can Read My Mind" from Superman II and more.

Johnny Cash tribute concert set

FORT RIPLEY - Church of Cash, a Johnny Cash acoustic tribute band, will perform at 8 p.m. Friday at St. Mathias Bar and Grill in Fort Ripley.

Jay "Jayder" Kalk formed Church of Cash in Honolulu in 2010. With an uncanny grasp of the Man in Black's catalog and many years of experience touring the United States, Europe and Asia, Kalk has returned to his Minnesota home to spread the gospel of one of the world's important and enduring songwriters.
The Church of Cash is true to the music of Johnny Cash, and singer Kalk''s deep baritone voice sings like a prairie breeze and stomps like a boot heel. Church of Cash is not a country band. Church of Cash is a tribute band with the express purpose of honoring the indelible legacy of Johnny Cash.

'Orphan Train' author to visit Brainerd

The New York Times bestselling author of "Orphan Train," Christina Baker Kline, will appear at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Central Lakes College's Chalberg Theater to present her book and the history behind it.

In "Orphan Train," Kline weaves an oft-forgotten piece of Minnesota history into a moving

story about friendship, loss, and family. Throughout the 1850s until the late 1920s, "orphan

trains" would arrive from the East Coast bringing thousands of orphaned or abandoned children to the Midwest for a new life. Sometimes they were adopted to become part of a family, other times they were brought on as little more than slaves for farm or domestic labor. Find out more about this fascinating piece of history and Kline's writing process from research to novelization.

This event is free and open to the public, with seats first come, first served.

Kline has written six novels including "Orphan Train," and has edited and written other

nonfiction work.

This free Legacy Program is funded in part or in whole with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov. 4, 2008, which dedicated funding to preserve Minnesota's arts and cultural heritage.

Author Jodi Schwen to sign books

BAXTER - Author Jodi Schwen will sign copies of her book "Northern Comfort: The Musings of Jacqueline Pine Savage" published by North Star Press from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday at Book World in Baxter.

Using the pen name of "Jacqueline Pine Savage" has allowed Schwen to protect the innocent while writing about life up north. Some call it "outstate" or the "boondocks" - Jacqueline Pine Savage calls it home. Either way, living in a rural community means finding the humor in north-woods living. In "Northern Comfort: The Musings of Jacqueline Pine Savage," readers enjoy the sacred holidays of hunting and fishing seasons, family bonding when the dogs get "skunked" and how to politely refuse the house tour when guests come a-calling.

Schwen, "Jacqueline Pine Savage," is a native of the north woods and lives in Brainerd. Her upnorth tales first appeared in Lake Country Journal magazine, where she began writing under her "Jackypine" pen name. She has learned to survive and thrive in her rural lifestyle by keeping her wit about her. She uses stories from personal experience and daily life to encourage others to spark their own creativity.

Schwen is editor-in-chief of Lake Country Journal (LCJ) magazine in Brainerd. In addition to LCJ, her published credits also include Minnesota Monthly, Guideposts, personal experience, fiction and fillers in various publications.

'Bend in the River' named People's Choice

AITKIN - The 2014 Plein Air Competition is done and the People's Choice Award went to Duane Barnhart with his watercolor painting entitled "Bend in the River" painted on location just off south of Highway 169 between Pine Lake and Hickory Lake.

The Community Canvas Exhibit is now on display at the Jaques with 317 8- by 8- inch canvases created by community members and friends of the Jaques. People may vote for Choice for Best of Show. Community Canvas will be on display until Sept. 6.

Cream of the Crop auditions set

RANDALL - The Cream of the Crop Community Theater will host auditions for "Bingo Spells Murder" written by Robert Mattson at 6 p.m. Aug. 21-22 upstairs at The Old Creamery Quilt Shop building in Randall.

Four male adults and three women adults are needed for the production.

Rehearsals will run Mondays through Thursdays starting Sept. 3. Performances are Oct. 10-12 and 24-26.

For more information call 320-749-2420 or go online at http://www.oldcreameryquiltshop.com/theater.htm .

Music General attends dance championships

The Teen-Senior Company Line Dancers at Music General in Brainerd recently attended Showstopper Dance Championships from June 30 to July 5 in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

The East Coast Finals held at the Sheraton Convention Center is the largest dance competition in the country, with more than 84 studios and more than 3,000 entries from the U.S. and Canada.

Music General was among the top competitors of the event, earning six Crystal Awards (175.1-180 points) and 17 Double Platinum Awards (172.5 -175 points). Three of the 23 Music General routines and solos were among the highest scores in the Overall Awards placing in the top 10 of their category and age division. Senior trio "Natalie", with dancers

Sylvia Borash, Madison Landsburg and Emma Miller, was the National Duet/Trio Champion, receiving first place overall with a score of 116.9. Teen Trio "Kill the Lights," including Sylvia Borash, Libby Borash and Savanna Oberfeld also scored among the top 10 Overall taking eighth place overall with a score of 115.9.

Soloist Sylvia Borash received 8th place overall in the Senior Competitive Division Soloists, scoring 116.9.

1/3: The Blue Moon Jazz Quintet will perform at 7 p.m. today in the bandstand in Gregory Park in Brainerd. The band features, Chris Fogderud playing trumpet; Mike Sommerness on the saxophone; Jim Olsen playing guitar; Nick Schwen on drums; and Greg Breen playing bass.

2/3: Minnesota Orchestra violinist Jonathan Magness will join the Lakes Area Music Festival’s chamber orchestra Wednesday in two musical depictions of "The Four Seasons" in a concert at Tornstrom Auditorium in Brainerd.

3/3: Ken Hager