Coastal Companion

Your ultimate guide to the coast

Alhambra’s Celebrity Week to Raise Money for Local Charities – Jacksonville, Fl

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Media and Local Celebrities to Make Cameo Appearances in Alhambra’s “The Foreigner”

— Alhambra’s Celebrity Week to Raise Money for Local Charities —

Audiences coming the see “The Foreigner” at the new Alhambra Theatre & Dining will get a bonus the week of May 10. New owner Craig Smith announced today the Alhambra’s first-ever Celebrity Week, during which each of that week’s seven shows will feature a cameo appearance by some of Jacksonville’s local media personalities and celebrities.

The big winner, however, will be local charities that each celebrity will represent. The Alhambra is donating a portion of tickets sales from each show to the charity of that celebrity’s choice. Additionally, to make it a friendly competition, the celebrity with the biggest draw – the one who essentially has the most tickets sold for their show — will receive a bonus donation to his or her charity.

Said Florida Times Union entertainment columnist and author of the tracy.com blog, “I get to check ‘perform on the Alhambra stage’ off my bucket list. I cannot wait.” On a more serious note, she added, “There are so many charities for which I have a strong affection, and I chose “Kids at Heart,” the new young professionals group for daniel Kids. I love daniel and I thought this would be a great way to enlighten Jacksonville about this new fundraising troop.”

“I love live theatre and I’m flattered to be asked to participate in an Alhambra production,” stated Melissa Ross, host of WJCT’s “Jacksonville Connects.” She added, “The Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Florida serves 13 counties and literally hundreds of agencies across this part of the state that help feed people in need.”

Schedule for the Stars

On their respective nights, each of the guest stars will appear in the same scene early in the second act of the show. The scene is actually not in the original script and is being “written in” by Alhambra Executive Producer Tod Booth, Sr. “The guest stars are going to have a ball doing it, and the cast is excited,” said Booth.

Currently lined up to perform at the Alhambra, and the charities for which they are raising money include:

Tuesday, May 11 Phil Amato, WTLV-TV JaxReStore, Habitat for Humanity

Wednesday, May 12 Melissa Ross, WJCT The Second Harvest Food Bank

Thursday, May 13 Tracy Collins, Times Union Kids at Heart, daniel

Friday, May 14 Arthur Crofton, WEJZ Salvation Army

Saturday, May 15 (e) Surprise guest

Sunday, May 16 (m) Richard Nunn, WJXT-TV American Diabetes Association

Sunday, May 16 Matt Saffer, WAWS-TV Child Cancer Fund

“I am an actor at heart. Growing up in New Jersey, I performed in countless shows throughout my life. In college, I attended one of the top musical theater programs in the nation and performed throughout New York City. Being able to step back onto the stage for a wonderful cause is something I can’t say no to. I’m honored the folks at the Alhambra asked me to do this,” said WAWS FOX30 reporter Matt Saffer.

The Foreigner Synopsis

Imagine yourself so pathologically shy that you move from your native country to the “middle of nowhere” and, to remove yourself from the world, you go so far as to pretend you’re from an exotic country and you don’t speak English. Because people think you can’t understand, you suddenly become the repository for all the town’s scandalous secrets. So goes the tale of Englishman Charlie Baker who finds himself plunked in rural South Georgia by a friend.

Winner of two Obie Awards and two Outer Circle Critic Awards as “Best New American Play” and “Best Off-Broadway Production,” The Foreigner is an inspired comic romp that demonstrates what can happen when a group of devious characters erroneously confess their sins to the wrong guy. Written by Larry Shue, the play ran for nearly 700 performances at New York City’s Astor Place Theatre to rave reviews. The New York Post describes The Foreigner as “a devilishly clever idea.” The Village Voice declared The Foreigner, “a constant invitation to relax and laugh at the foolishness of life.”

The Foreigner opens April 30 and will run through June 13, 2010. Show times are 8:00 PM for evening shows Tuesday through Sunday. Doors open at 6:00, buffet starts at approximately 6:45. Matinees on Saturday are at 1:15. Doors open at 11 and the buffet starts at 11:15. Sunday matinee is at 2:00. Doors open at noon and the buffet starts at 12:15. Group sales are available. Tickets start at $42 and include dinner and the show. Tickets for the Gala are available by becoming a Season Ticket or Triple Play Partner. Call the box office or visit www.alhambrajax.com for details.

The new Alhambra Theatre & Dining

The Alhambra Theatre is the nation’s oldest continually operating professional dinner theatre. Opened in 1967, The Alhambra has hosted legends such as Tony Curtis, Claude Aiken, Sid Cesar and Cesar Romero, and she was the place of Betty Grable’s final acting role. The Alhambra is also home to former Miss America, Orange Park native Leanza Cornett who started at the Alhambra when she was 15. In November 2009, the Alhambra was purchased by Theatre Partners, LLC, headed by Jacksonville entrepreneur and Alhambra patron, Craig Smith as way to give back to Jacksonville and preserve what he believes is one of its cultural jewels.

Jacksonville Green, Health and Wellness Expo 2010

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This year’s expo takes place at the Prime Osborn Convention Center in downtown Jacksonville on Saturday, May 15 and Sunday May 16, 2010.
Click the play button here to check out the interview we did with Martin Kabaki from the Jacksonville Green Expo and Dwain Stephens from Publix regarding the event.

Green Living, Health and Wellness under one roof
The event offers seminars and exhibits on green living and building, health and wellness topics. The annual Jacksonville Green Expo is run by Global Greenup, LLC. The company’s President Martin Kabaki says, “We’re very excited that the Green Expo is growing. ”
Purity Gikunju, Operations VP of Global Greenup, says, “In addition to fantastic displays of environmental products and services ranging from CFL bulbs to solar panels, there are going to be informative workshops to show people innovative and practical ways to be more environmentally conscientious in their lives and in their workplaces. We’ll have a Green Kids Zone, for children to play while they learn the importance of taking care of the environment. We are also planning to host a speaker series to brainstorm on different ways which will help in bringing more green jobs to the First Coast.”

North Florida Clean Cities Coalition
The 2010 Jacksonville Green Expo will also be used as a launch pad and a forum to bring awareness to the newly created North Florida Clean Cities Coalition. The Coalition is a campaign by the federal government to help reduce dependency on foreign oil and promote regional economic opportunities.

Exhibition Hours: 10am to 5pm on both days. For more information about the upcoming Green Expo, please  visit www.JacksonvilleGreenExpo.com

Last year we visited Jacksonville Green Expo and made this video.

The Council of Dads – Book signing in Savannah, GA

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THE COUNCIL OF DADS is the book Bruce Feiler never expected to write. For years, he has captivated readers with his smart, witty, insightful storytelling, which chronicles his heart-stopping adventures around the world in such bestsellers as Walking the Bible, Abraham, and America’s Prophet.

Author Bruce FeilerBut in 2008, Feiler, the father of two young girls, learned he had a life-threatening tumor in his left femur. Confronting the possibility that he may not be around to help his daughters grow up, he reached out to six men from all passages in his life and asked them to be present through the passages in his daughters’ lives. And he called this group of men “The Council of Dads.”

“I believe my daughters will have plenty of opportunities,” he wrote to these men. “They’ll have loving families. They’ll have welcoming homes. They’ll have each other. But they may not have me. They may not have their dad. Will you help be their dad?”
On May 12, one of the Council of Dads, Dr. Ben Edwards will be in attendance at Trinity United Methodist Church for a heartwarming introduction of Mr. Feiler.

The Council of Dads, by Bruce FeilerTHE COUNCIL OF DADS is the uplifting story of what happened next. Feiler introduces us to the extraordinary, far-flung men in his Council and captures the life lesson he wants each of them to convey to his daughters—how to see, how to travel, how to question, how to dream. And he captures in beautiful, wrenching prose the harrowing journey of his “Lost Year” fighting cancer and trying to salvage his leg. With unflinching candor, Feiler details not only the physical effects of the disease and treatment, but also the toll it took on his family. But along the way, the wisdom and strength he gathers from his Council, coupled with the beauty and humor he discovers in his own family, transforms his “Lost Year” into a “Jubilee Year” of reconnection and renewal. The result is an extraordinary tribute to friendship, and a sage collection of advice for how to cultivate our dreams.

THE COUNCIL OF DADS is a deeply hopeful book, a story of enduring love between a husband and wife and between a father and his daughters. But most of all it’s a celebration of friendship and a testament to the profound power of human connections.

BRUCE FEILER is the New York Times bestselling author of nine books, including Walking the Bible, Abraham and America’s Prophet. He has traveled to more than sixty countries on five continents and is the writer-presenter of the PBS miniseries, Walking the Bible. With his books, Bruce Feiler has moved readers to take a fresh look at history and far-flung places of the world. Now, with THE COUNCIL OF DADS, Feiler inspires us to cultivate a deeper appreciation of the people closest to us and revitalize the most intimate bonds in our lives. A native of Savannah, Georgia, he lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Linda Rottenberg, and their twin daughters, Tybee and Eden.
Bruce Feiler and family

For more information visit www.savannahbookfestival.org

Pops at the Beach – Mother’s Day Concert at Jacksonville Beach, Florida

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POPS AT THE BEACH
It is spring, it is TPC week, and it is Mother’s Day. Cap off the week of championship golf by talking your favorite mother to the Sea Walk Pavilion on Mother’s Day. What better way to honor her than a Pops concert featuring the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra performing a little night music.  An extra plus is the fact that admission to the concert is free, so you can treat Mom to lunch or dinner instead.  Just bring mom, friends, family, lawn chairs or blanket, and enjoy an evening of great music, moonlight, sea breezes and the sounds of the ocean. This is a family event, kids of all ages are welcome. Soft drinks, wine and beer, food, and dessert are available for purchase. Admission is free. The event area opens at 5:00 PM.

The City of Jacksonville Beach, Beaches Fine Arts Series, B.R.A.S.S., and the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra are partnering again to bring you the annual Mother’s Day POPS AT THE BEACH concert featuring the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra on Sunday, May 9, 2010.

This is the 16th POPS AT THE BEACH performance by the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra and the 10th from the Sea Walk Pavilion stage designed specifically for the JSO by The Haskell Company. Under the direction of guest conductor Morihiko Nakahara, the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra takes the stage at 7:30 PM performing music from the movies, the opera, Broadway and the concert hall. Maestro Nakahara is in his second season as music director of the South Carolina Philharmonic. Having served as Jacksonville Symphony associate conductor in 2007, he continues to make annual JSO conducting appearances.

The Jacksonville Mass Choir starts off the evening’s entertainment at 5:45 PM with To Michael with Love – The Songs of Michael Jackson. The group is directed by Deborah McDuffie, Artistic Director for the Jacksonville Mass Choir and its younger component, Boys and Girls Choir; and, Chair of the Fine Arts Department/Choral Director at Paxon School for Advanced Studies and Executive Director of Arts4Jax, Inc., a community performing arts foundation in Jacksonville, Florida.
There is no better way to show moms how special they are than this outstanding performance under the stars at Jacksonville Beach’s Sea Walk Pavilion.

For more information, call the hotline  (904) 247-6100 press 3 or visit  www.jacksonvillebeach.org.

MOTHER’S DAY CONCERT PROGRAM

THE JACKSONVILLE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
MORIHIKO NAKAHARA, CONDUCTING A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC!
Overture to West Side Story BERNSTEIN/PERESS
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Mvt. I MOZART
Send in the Clowns from A Little Night Music SONDHEIM/LOWDEN
Por Una Cabeza (Tango from Scent of a Woman) GARDEL/WILLIAMS Philip Pan, violin
Suite from Carmen BIZET Les Toreadors – Suite No. 1, Mvt. V Habanera – Suite No. 2, Mvt. II Nocturn – Suite No. 2, Mvt. III Danse Boheme – Suite No. 2, Mvt. VI

INTERMISSION

The Wizard of Oz ARLEN/SAYRE
La Comparsa (Night Procession) LECUONA
Dance of the Hours from La Gioconda PONCHELLI
Moon River MANCINI
Phantom of the Opera WEBBER/CUSTER

North Charleston Arts Festival 2010

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The 2010 North Charleston Arts Festival takes place from April 30 – May 8, 2010. The celebration lasts for nine whole days and the festival is one of the most comprehensive arts festivals in the Lowcountry.

North Charleston Arts festivalThe Main Event
The Main Event, held May 1st and 2nd at the Charleston Area Convention Center Complex, offers free admission and parking to over 40 performances on four stages featuring national, regional, and local professional performers, ethnic and cultural groups. Other activities include judged art, photography, youth art, and fine craft exhibitions, a gem & mineral show, children’s activities, Art & Craft booths, and an Outdoor Food Court.

The Festival Week
Concerts, theater and dance performances, children’s programs, literary events, and multi-cultural block parties are just some of the offerings during the Festival Week. The Arts Festival has over 50 free or moderately priced ticketed events throughout the week at various locations around North Charleston. Festival Week offerings include concerts, theater and dance performances, children’s programs, literary events, block parties, an Art Walk, and much more.

The Grand Finale
The festivities conclude on Saturday, May 8, with the Grand Finale at Riverfront Park, featuring a variety of concerts and activities, as well as a fantastic fireworks display over the Cooper River.

For more information call 843-745-1087 or visit www.northcharleston.org