Madeleine Peroux and Rebecca Pidgeon

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 Singers Madeleine Peroux and Rebecca Pidgeon appeared at Three Stages at Folsom Lake College Thursday night as part of the 2012–13 season of Performing Arts and as part of “Jazz at Three Stages” sponsored by Capital Public Radio.

Headliner Madeleine Peroux is truly a jazz song stylist, and she, along with her 4 piece backing band, would fit right in at the annual Sacramento Music Festival—what most of us remember and still call the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee. Her vocals rise and fall, sliding around the melodies with ease, as she interprets jazz and blues standards, along with her original songs.

Peroux is truly and international artist. She is American, born in Athens Georgia, but she moved away too young to be part of the music scene there, that produced REM, the B-52’s, and dozens of other notable musicians. After living in Brooklyn NY, at 13 she moved with her mother to Paris, and came of age in the street music scene, developing her talent as a singer and guitarist on the streets of Europe, eventually touring with blues and jazz bands. She was soon recognized as a singer in the mode of Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday, both of whom she counts as influential to her style, along with Patsy Cline, Leonard Cohen, and Bob Dylan, among others.

She featured in her show songs from all stages of her career, including her early versions of Dance Me To The End Of Love by Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan’s You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go, both of which sounded great, and not much like the originals. She also covers Robert Johnson’s Love In Vain, which is on her latest album “Standing On The Rooftop”. Her Love In Vain is moving and soaring with emotion, and very different from Johnson’s bare bones original, or the Rolling Stones’ slow blues/rock rendition. She also performed the title song Standing On The Rooftop, which featured some beautiful slide guitar and piano from her band. Of course she included a few French songs, La Javanaise and J'ai Deux Amours, which she naturally sings like a native.

Her singing style is moving and challenging. She will often hit a note that does not sound quite on, then hold it for just a little longer that you expect, before sliding back into the key. She rises and falls, gets soft and loud, and interprets the lyrics as as storyteller, all of which makes her the jazz artist she is.

I first became aware of Rebecca Pidgeon in the 1997 film “The Spanish Prisoner”, which was written and directed by her husband David Mamet (and has nothing to do with Spain or prisoners.) I later saw her in the 2000 film “State And Main”, also by Mamet, and she became one of my favorite actresses. Like a Zoey Deschanel from ten years earlier, she plays these great characters with wide eyed confidence in themselves and others, and who radiate goodness and warmth and draw you in; you just want to hang out with them. And then you find out she is also a great singer and songwriter! I discovered her album “Tough On Crime” from 2005, loving her gentle and stirring music.

Like Peroux, Pidgeon is international; born in Cambridge, Massachusetts to British parents. Her family moved to Scotland when she was five, and she studied drama in London, after which she returned to the US, which accounts for her slightly unusual accent—like her citizenship, a mix of American and British. Her mixed career of music and acting came to fruition in the 1990’s when she released a series of solo albums while appearing in several movies and stage plays. Her latest album is called “Slingshot”, and all the songs from her set on Thursday were from that collection.

She opened with her “rock” song, Disintegration Man, followed by the upbeat but sad I Loved No-One and Get Up, Get Out, and then four more songs from Slingshot. Her style has been called folk, probably because she is a singer-songwriter and guitarist, but her songs show influence from pop, rock, theatre, jazz and folk music, so she really fits into the “indie pop” category—which of course is wide open. To me it means you can hear the individual instruments blending together, with melodic and harmonic vocals serving as another instrument in the mix. Belle & Sebastian, The Shins, the Fleet Foxes, and Zooey Deschanel’s She & Him are perfect examples, and Rebecca Pidgeon fits right in with this sensibility that rejects the highly produced and synthesized modern pop music on today’s airwaves.

She appeared with one other musician in the Three Stages show, an electric guitarist and backing vocalist (Tim Young) who blended nicely with her lead vocals and acoustic guitar. The only drawback was that she was the opening act, and thus only had a seven song, 30 minute set for us to enjoy, but it was a great half hour, and nice opening for Madeleine Peroux’s set.

Pidgeon and Madeleine are currently touring together and with other musicians. For more information about their music and shows, see www.rebeccapidgeonmusic.com and www.madeleineperoux.com.

Ken Kiunke  8/25/2012 Originally published in the Gold Country Times. Reprintable with attribution to the Gold Country Times and Ken Kiunke

In the heart of downtown Sacramento on K Street, across from the Crest Theater, the California Musical Theater, who brings you Broadway Sacramento and the Music Circus, hosts a smaller venue, the Cosmopolitan Cabaret, a 200 seat theater with both table seating and tiered seating with drink rails. This venue presents smaller scale musical comedy shows, and allows patrons to enjoy drinks and appetizers during the show. The CMT has brought to Sacramento “Triple Espresso—a highly caffeinated comedy”—a show that has a long history—14 years and over 8500 performances in 45 cities—but still seems fresh and new.

Triple Espresso puts 3 engaging performers on the stage, with a mix of music, comedy, magic, and yes, even hand shadow puppets. All this is wrapped in a story of the three characters, who formed the fictional trio of Maxwell, Butternut and Bean, and saw the highs and lows of a career together in show business. But the narrative is really just a prop to showcase the talents of the three men on stage. The show is the brainchild of Michael Pearce Donley, Bill Arnold, and Bob Stromberg, who met for coffee in Minneapolis in 1995, and came up with a concept to combine their talents into a show, which they first performed at a local church. It was an immediate success, and ran for 12 years in Minneapolis theaters, and they eventually hired additional performers to play the roles so the show could expand and play in multiple cities.

Donley, Arnold, and Stromberg are performing the show in Sacramento for the initial run; on June 12 they will be replaced by three of their long standing “alternates.” Michael Pearce Donely plays a coffee house musician, playing piano and lounge singing his way through his act. Bill Arnold is the sullen magician, and Bob Stromberg is the multi-talented sidekick, whose expressive face steals the spotlight from his partners whenever he lights up.

The shows gets its name from the setting of the coffee house where Donley—Hugh Butternut—is playing as a solo act. Donley shows he is a talented piano player and singer, and engages the audience as he opens the show, even taking requests (though it seems his hearing is selective to songs that fit with the show...) He is soon joined by his “former partners”, and they review their career with some very funny scenarios that keep the audience laughing, and not knowing what to expect next. I don't want to go into too much detail about the show, since comedy often relies on the unexpected, but they do often interact with audience members with very funny results. My wife Karen was one of the people singled out—perhaps they could tell she would be a good sport—along with a few others who became recurring characters in the show.

The very best magic shows are very funny, along with being amazing. Bill Arnold as Buzz Maxwell leans toward the funny more than amazing, but you can tell he is actually a talented magician while he does a couple of mini magic shows. Bob Stromberg as Bobby Bean comes across as a game show host type, friendly and smiling—he reminded me of singer/actor Louden Wainwright III, whose expressive face tells the story as much as his songs do. Stomberg as Bean surprised and delighted the audience in a sequence showing what happened when his partner Hugh Butternut entered into a classical piano competition. The show is full of these kinds of surprises, including one by the trio during intermission as the audience filed out to the lobby.

The Cosmopolitan Cabaret is a nice venue for this kind of intimate show—it wouldn’t work nearly as well in a large theater. It is also nice to be able to enjoy a drink or an appetizer as well, though you should arrive early, as the wait staff is stretched pretty thin—we had to go to the K Bar ourselves during intermission to get a refreshment. For a downtown night time show, it is surprisingly kid friendly—the humor is all clean and appropriate for all ages, though it is fairly baby boomer focused. The show runs through July 22, though to see the original performers you need to get there by June 10. (I am sure the second cast, Christopher Hart, Brian Kelly and Paul Somers, are just as good—they were hand picked and trained by the originals and directed by William Partlan, and have performed the show many times themselves around the country to great reviews.) Some have compared the trio to the Marx Brothers, but I found the humor, music, and variety to be more akin to fellow Minnesotan Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion style. At the conclusion of the show, the opening night audience gave the show a much deserved standing ovation. For more information, visit www.CosmopolitanCabaret.com and www.tripleespresso.com.

Ken Kiunke  6/3/2012 Originally published in the Gold Country Times. Reprintable with attribution to the Gold Country Times and Ken Kiunke

Note - the Cosmopolitan Caberet closed in 2012.

The California State Fair opened last Thursday for 2012 at Cal Expo in Sacramento. Always a highlight for the summer, the fair returns with many of the usual delights, and a few surprises as well.

Toys have been around in one form or another for as long as there have been children to play with them. But with the industrial revolution, toymaking became a mass production enterprise, and by the 20th century, the industry began creating toys that kids all over the United States, and eventually the world, could play with, and thus established a common experience, and now a shared nostalgia for the treasures we all waited for on Christmas morning and at our birthdays. By the 1960's, just about every kid in the U.S. had played Monopoly, the girls all knew Barbie, the boys all knew G.I. Joe, and thousands of other toys were, if not owned, at least played with by most everyone growing up in the same era. (You may not have had a Mousetrap game yourself, but someone in the neighborhood did.) Legos, Lincoln Logs, Hula Hoops, and Playdoh became part of our language and shared history as children growing up in America.

With this shared nostalgia, and continued fondness by kids for the old favorites as well as new toys, the  State Fair has brought back “Toytopia 2.0”, an exhibit designed for kids who love toys, and adults who fondly remember their toys from years ago (I think that covers everyone...) There are kiosks and displays featuring toys from over the years, as well as interactive areas where kids and their parents can use the toys to build and play, such as Legos, Lincoln Logs, dollhouses and other building toys that are fun and entertaining. Kids who grew up in the 70's and 80's will appreciate the video arcade, where you can pop in your quarter and see if you maintained your skills in Pacman, Missile Command, Galaga, Tron, Asteroids, and others.

Everywhere you turn there is a display showing some of the cutting edge toys we grew up with, from an original Mr. Potato Head (with real potatoes), an Atari video game console (with a switch to choose Black and White or Color TV), original Monopoly, G.I. Joe, Barbie, Star Wars sets and more. There is also a lot of toy education to be had in the interactive displays – did you know that renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright's son, John Lloyd Wright, invented Lincoln Logs? The model railroad displays were not for the serious modeler, but enjoyable to look at, especially the 8 foot tall double helix with trolleys traveling up and down the corkscrew track. An Etch-A-Sketch display featured some truly impressive artwork created on the toy, and the world's largest Etch-A-Sketch as well. Dolls and stuffed animals are will represented, and even a giant Rubic's Cube setting the colorful mood.

There is live interaction too, as “toy scientists” will demonstrate some of the unusual products available, creating imitation snow right in your hands, or shooting a blast of air across the room, for example. There are also yo-yo experts demonstrating their skills on the floor, and even above! And of course there is a selection of toys for sale, both modern and nostalgic, and candy as well, with plenty of those labels baby boomers will remember growing up with.

Entertainment at the State Fair is always a highlight, with a mix of nostalgia and new acts featured on the Golden One Stage. On Friday, we saw “Happy Together” featuring 5 acts that began their careers in the 60’s. During a time when iconic acts such as the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Supremes, Simon and Garfunkel, the Doors, the Who, etc. were leading the rock and roll revolution, there were many other musicians scoring number one hits and creating perfect pop/rock songs, but who will never be in the hall of fame. The Buckinghams hit the charts with Kind of a Drag and Don’t You Care. The Grass Roots were known for songs like Lets Live For Today and Midnight Confessions. And Gary Puckett and the Union Gap were making hits like Young Girl and Lady Willpower. The remaining members of these bands have teamed up with the more iconic Mickey Dolenz of the Monkees and Flo & Eddie of the Turtles to put together a fun and heart warming show for the baby boomer set. After the first three did their hits, Dolenz took the stage and sang some of his Monkee hits – The Last Train To Clarksville, Pleasant Valley Sunday and others, and did a nice tribute to Davy Jones, who died earlier this year. The Turtles, whose song Happy Together provides the name for the show, finished with their light-hearted set before bringing everyone back on the stage for the finale. The singers were all in pretty good voice, and the show brought the crowd to its feet after each act.

The Golden One concert series continues with acts like Rick Springfield, American Idol Scotty McCreery, rock legend Jim Messina, and finishes with Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. General seating for the shows is free with Fair admission, but preferred seating is available with tickets priced for each show. For more info in the concerts and the California State Fair, go to www.bigfun.org.

Ken Kiunke 7/15/2012 Originally published in the Gold Country Times. Reprintable with attribution to the Gold Country Times and Ken Kiunke

I spent my younger days as a Cast Member (also know as employee) at Disneyland, and much of that time as a Steam Train conductor on Main Street USA. My favorite time of the year was between Thanksgiving and New Years when the park was all decked out for the season, with a Christmas parade, giant Christmas tree, Dickens carolers, decorations all over, and plenty of Christmas music playing all day. With everyone decked out in winter wear, and in a jolly mood, it compared very favorably to the long, hot busy summer days. With the bar set high by Disney, it seems that every theme park now goes all out for special events at Christmas and the holiday season.

We visited Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo for their Holiday in the Park event, which runs until New Years day. I tried not to compare it to Disneyland too much, since there really is no comparison to the charm of Main Street USA, especially during Christmas.  But Discovery Park does the season well, with the park decorated nicely, and lots of special events going on. They have with the biggest artificial Christmas tree I've ever seen, a perfect cone, all lit up at night. The kids get a chance to meet Santa, decorate cookies, see a puppet show, and see some cute singing and dancing shows. There is a Christmas tree forest area with a grove of decorated trees, and Candy Cane Lane, which features a snow hill that young and old can slide down on a sled, and a small snow play area where kids can play in the snow and pelt their folks with snowballs.

Most of the regular features of the park are also open (though some do close early, so check the schedules, especially if you want to visit the Land section or “Reindeer Village”, and see tigers and elephants.) Our kids enjoyed the penguins, sharks, dolphins and walruses. The dolphin show is done up for the holidays, mixing a Christmas theme in with the usual aqua acrobatics, delighting the audience. The dolphins really do seem to enjoy the performance, and all four perform some amazing tricks, and even do some “singing”. If you sit up front, you will get wet, so you may want to back off for the cold weather. We didn't have time to see everything, but Shouka the killer whale and the sea lions also have special holiday shows.

Of course the great roller coasters are always there, and the great thing was there were hardly any lines to board when we were there, so the kids could go on as many times as they wanted—the Cobra was a favorite for its quick but not too scary route. The go carts were also a favorite (extra fee required) as we raced around the road course pretending we were NASCAR drivers. There is no track, so passing is possible, and you get enough laps to really make it a race.

We finished the day with the Happy Holidays musical dinner and show. They served an all-you-can-eat turkey dinner, with dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, vegetables, salad, cranberries, and a vegetarian pasta dish. The turkey tasted great, it was carved right there, and you could choose your own white or dark meat. The desert was a choice between tiramisu and cheesecake with toppings (or both!) They were both were very tasty. Soft drinks and coffee are also included. The Happy Holidays show was a musical set performed by five talented young people. They did six songs that ranged from cute to funny. It lasted just long enough to enjoy, but not too long for the kids in the audience to get restless.

The staff of Discovery Kingdom were friendly and helpful throughout the day. Whenever we spent too much time looking at the guide map, someone would come and ask if we needed help finding anything. (The map is one thing that could be improved on, it was not detailed enough to find our way to the things we wanted to see.) The people working there seemed to really enjoy what there were doing, and it showed in how they interacted with the park guests. And one thing I had never seen before in a theme park were the little bonfires they had going in several places around the park, so if you got to cold, you could always warm your hands and chat with the staff or other guests.

The park is open daily from December 17 to January 1, except Christmas Eve and Christmas day. (Another difference from Disneyland – I worked every Christmas Eve and day in my career there!) The hours are limited, so plan ahead and get there right at opening time to enjoy all they have to offer. By the way, the directions on the website are not quite accurate from the Sacramento area, but just take to I-80 West, and then Highway 37 West, get off at the first exit and turn left on Fairgrounds Drive. If you can't make it down to Disneyland, or just want to avoid the crowds and hassle, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom is a great way to treat the kids and have a fun time yourselves (and not spend the whole day doing it!) Have a great time and a wonderful holiday season!

Ken Kiunke 12/16/2011 Originally published in the Gold Country Times. Reprintable with attribution to the Gold Country Times and Ken Kiunke

We always enjoy the Christmas season and the chance to experience candlelight processions, living Christmas trees, choirs and orchestras performing the great music of the yuletide. This year we had the opportunity to see a first class professional symphony orchestra and the Sacramento area’s leading choral group at the beautiful Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. It was a wonderful evening we won’t ever forget, and a very special way to greet the season. Conductor Donald Kendrick led the 53 piece orchestra and 151 member chorus in an evening of musical favorites, along with some lesser known pieces, celebrating Christmas, the nativity, and the holiday season. Kendrick is the founding conductor (in 1996) of the Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra, and he is also Director of Choral Activities at California State University Sacramento, and Director of Music at Sacred Heart Church in Sacramento. The Christmas concerts at the Mondavi Center at UC Davis are an annual event for the Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra and not to be missed if you love a wonderful Christmas show.

This year's concerts were on the weekend of December 11th and 12th. Kendrick not only directed the orchestra and choral group, but acted as host, filling in information about the music being performed, including composers, eras, and interesting back stories. (Did you know Sleigh Ride was written in the heat of the July summer in 1946, and first recorded by Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops?) Kendrick was warm and engaging throughout, and with a good sense of humor as well.

The concert opened with a fourteenth century work from Finland, titled Personent Hodie, sung as the candlelight procession lined the aisles of the theater. I was lucky enough to be seated near an aisle, so I could hear the individual voices of some of the sopranos and altos while they blended beautifully with the rest of the choral group and the orchestra. The piece is sung in Latin, but the program provides translations for the non English songs. The first half of the show continued with some familiar and some not so familiar pieces, such as the Donkey Carol and The Colors Of Christmas, and two pieces by well known movie composer John Williams—Somewhere In Memory and Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, both from the Home Alone movies—which bring his familiar style of dramatic orchestrations, but full of the joy of the season. Old favorites Winter Wonderland and Away In A Manger were brought to beautiful life in their arrangements from Barlow Bradford.

After intermission Kendrick led the audience in a sing-along medley, which can be risky, but the crowd sang with enthusiasm and surprising talent. The concert was being recorded, and earlier Kendrick had asked us refrain from joining in, but the audience sing-along allowed everyone with the spirit to participate with gusto and four part harmony. Other highlights of the second half were two quieter pieces. Gloria, also in Latin and beautifully sung and performed, allowed the individual sections of the orchestra to carry the melody, switching from the woodwinds to the strings and brass sections. Still Still Still featured Concert Master Cindy Lee’s exquisite violin playing. And a slightly re-written Home For the Holidays found Placerville, Vacaville, and Sacramento subbing for Tennessee and Pennsylvania, and “from Lake Tahoe to the Pacific, gee, the traffic is horrific” to add a little fun.

A stunning Silent Night arrangement from Barlow Bradford featured the orchestra playing a moving counter melody to the chorus, and the audience was again encouraged to join in on the third verse. After that beautiful piece, the audience was sent home home with a rousing We Wish You A Merry Christmas, and the crowd responded with a standing ovation for Kendrick and the musicians.

The Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra will next perform on April 14 at the Sacramento Community Center Theater with “English Grandeur”; and on June 2 at the Fremont Presbyterian Church in Sacramento, which features one of the largest pipe organs in the Western U.S. For more info on these upcoming shows and the Sacramento Choral Society, visit www.SacramentoChoral.com.

Ken Kiunke 11/1/2011 Originally published in the Gold Country Times. Reprintable with attribution to the Gold Country Times and Ken Kiunke