Music Notes

‘Jewgrass: the Appalachians meet the Carpathians’
Wednesday, Nov. 2

Special guest, Hot Tuna’s Barry Mitterhoff, will join Yale Strom and Hot Pstromi to perform “mountain music” from the klezmer of the Carpathian Ukraine to Old Time Americana from Appalachia. Mitterhoff, a virtuosic mandolin player, will present music that is an essential part of both Eastern European Jewish and Southern mountain Christian cultures.

Both traditions, born in isolated and rural mountain communities, meld together spirituality, culture and geography. The free and public concert will also feature Jeff Pekarek, Duncan Moore, Walt Richards, Fred Benedetti, Tripp Sprague, and Elizabeth Schwartz. 7 p.m. at Smith Recital Hall at SDSU (5500 Campanile Drive). Visit jewishstudies.sdsu.edu/lectures_events.htm for more information.

Campanile Music Festival public concert
Friday, Nov. 4

This free public concert will feature San Diego State faculty and visiting artists performing pieces by Prokofiev, Verdi and Faure. The festival is put on by SDSU’s school of Music and Dance faculty, with the goal of allowing students to work with professional musicians for several days. The festival culminates with this concert at 7:30 p.m. in Smith Recital Hall at SDSU (5500 Campanile Drive). Visit CampanileMusicFestival.SDSU.edu for a full schedule of events and other details.

Gallery Views

‘Four of a Kind’
Saturday, Nov. 5–Friday, Dec. 2

Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation is presenting this exhibition featuring four award-winning photographers: Janine Free, Jill Rowe, Kirk Sullivan and Jennifer Wolf. A public reception for the show will be held in honor of the artists on Saturday, Nov. 12 from 1–4 p.m. The exhibit will be on display in Mission Trails Regional Park Visitor Center Art Gallery (1 Father Junipero Serra Trail) through Dec. 2. Visit mtrp.org for more details.

With Abandon: Works by SDSU Alumni 2011–2016
Through Sunday, Nov. 6

This exhibition features five years of work from alumni of the SDSU School of Art + Design. Surveying approaches from multiple areas of 2-D and 3-D study, the works share a common element of use of familiar, every-day materials or subject matter. Artists include Adam John Manley, Lee Lavy, Kaiya Rainbolt, and Marisa Scheinfeld, among others. Guest curated by Ginger Shulick Porcella, executive director, San Diego Art Institute. “With Abandon” is being shown a the SDSU Downtown Gallery (725 West Broadway). The gallery is open Thursday–Monday from 11 a.m.–4 p.m. Admission is free. Visit artsalive.sdsu.edu for more info.

‘Animalia: A Group Show’
Opening Saturday, Nov. 12

This group art show will host its opening reception from 6–9 p.m. with refreshments and small bites. Artists featured will include 32 local San Diego artists with several from the East County area, including: Jon Barnes, Alexander Arshansky, Brennan Hubbel, Laura Ball, Perry Vasquez and Neal Bociek. Pieces will include oil paintings, watercolor, iron and marble works, photography, archival prints and more. “Animalia” will be on display at Sparks Gallery (530 Sixth Ave., Gaslamp) through Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017. Visit sparksgallery.com for more information.

Stage Cues 

‘Blue’
Friday, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29

This play based on a children’s book explores the concepts of bullying, tolerance and inclusion with a story set under the circus big top. Blue is the quiet clown in the Circus of Colors and Red is the ringmaster who picks on Blue. The other clowns don’t like what they see but what can they do? Performances will be held on Friday, Oct. 28 at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Oct. 29 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at Grossmont College’s Stagehouse Theatre (8800 Grossmont College Drive, El Cajon bordering La Mesa). Visit bit.ly/2efnnou for $10 tickets.

‘Julius Caesar’
Friday, Nov. 4–Sunday, Nov. 13

This unique production of the classic Shakespearean play comes to SDSU’s Experimental Theatre (5500 Campanile Drive) with Delicia Turner Sonnenburg of Moxie Theatre as guest director. The cast for this modern take on Shakespeare’s classic tale of conspiracy, politics and betrayal will be entirely comprised of women. The timing of the show is deliberate to coincide with the national elections. Tickets are $15 for students and $17 for general admission. Visit ttf.sdsu.edu for tickets and show times.

On Film

Movies at the College Avenue Center
Mondays and Tuesdays in November

The College Avenue Center (6299 Capri Drive, Del Cerro) will host several movie screenings in the coming months. The showings start at 1 p.m. on Mondays and Tuesdays and the lineup includes:

“A Royal Night Out” on Monday, Nov. 7 and Tuesday, Nov. 8

“The Meddler” on Monday, Nov. 14 and Tuesday, Nov. 15

“Zootopia” on Monday, Nov. 21 and Tuesday, Nov. 22

“Genius” on Monday, Nov. 28 and Tuesday, Nov. 29

Visit jfssd.org for more information.