From the Town Hall Theatre Company website:
written by: Larry Gelbart
directed by: Søren Oliver
September 27 – October 20, 2012
Ah! Gold! “God” with an “L”!
Søren Oliver (Art, Twelfth Night) starts us off with the hilarious Sly Fox by Larry Gelbart (M*A*S*H,Tootsie). Fiendishly clever Foxwell J. Sly sets out to fleece the richest men in San Francisco’s Barbary Coast by using their own greed against them.
Rated PG13 for adult situations
Back in May I noted that Lamorinda Music in Lafayette was expanding and that a high-end guitar shop was going to open up within as well. The shop, owned by The Waybacks former guitarist and singer Stevie Coyle is called Might Fine Guitars. From their Facebook page:
An acoustic guitar boutique featuring absolutely top-shelf luthiers. A limited number of lessons is available, as well. Concerts and workshops by local and touring pros.
The shop is accessible both directly from outside as well as within Lamorinda Music, and performances will be held in “The Big Room” right outside (also within Lamorinda Music). Last Saturday, the Irish musician legend Andy Irvine performed.
Check out the inside of the store with owner Stevie Coyle:
Notice that one of the instruments in the photo above being sold is a mandolin, although the focus are high-end acoustic guitars.
Check out some of acoustic guitars for sale below:
The one at bottom right is particularly interesting as the sound hole is offset to the left. Although I’m not a guitar expert by any means, the quality of these instruments is readily apparent. And the owner has a great sense of humor! For example, they note that their phone number is YAK.ANT.TACO 🙂
Mighty Fine Guitars plans on having a “coffee Klatch” the first Sunday of every month, and owner Stevie Coyle offers private lessons with fingerstyle being a specialty, and beginners are welcome. They are located at 85 Lafayette Circle in Lafayette.
Spotted at the Lafayette Art & Wine Festival last weekend, this sculpture really turned heads.
Back in July I noted the opening of cooking school and production kitchen Back to the Table, and last weekend during the Lafayette Art & Wine Festival some of the food artisans who rent space at the production kitchen on the second floor were selling their goods. Introducing, from left to right:
Support your local food artisans and Back to the Table by checking them out and consider buying something. I can vouch for the brownies and jam, they were delicious!
Back in August I noted that Teacake Bake Shop closed in downtown Lafayette and now a new bakery has opened, appropriately called Cake. Note the period is part of their name. I think I’m seeing a trend here. Anyway, the owner Andrea Quinn used to be the pastry chef at the Oakland restaurant Bay Wolf, and owned a bakery in Hawaii for many years. Cake. offers handcrafted bakery items that are 90% organic, with locally sourced ingredients such as honey and eggs.
The interior is beautifully decorated with rotating artwork from the Berkeley vintage European poster showroom Vepca.
Note the iPad being used in place of a cash register. Amazing.
Sightglass coffee is for sale on one wall:
The coconut macaroon I tried was amazing, yum! Cake. is located at 35 Lafayette Circle in La Fiesta Square in Lafayette.
I always smile when I pass a kid’s lemonade stand, especially one with a toy cash register and handmade sign. At $1 it was a bargain compared to a few blocks away. This one was located a few blocks from the Lafayette Art & Wine Festival and apparently made around $40 that day.
This Missing German Shepherd sign is posted everywhere in Lafayette, if you have seen him please let them know so he can be reunited with their family.
Venture Men’s Goods, a new men’s clothing store in downtown Lafayette whose name was only unmasked recently opened its doors last week. They focus on higher end California designed brands such as Tellason, Talyor Stitch, Marmot and more. You can check out the rest of the brands they carry here. Everything really looks amazing, the layout is clean (a fresh pine scent is evident thanks to the pine tables in the middle of the store), and they even carry local designers such as dapper beaux ties.
If you stop by today, be sure to enter your name for a chance to win a pair of SeaVees baja slip on shoes. The grand opening daily giveaway runs until tomorrow.
The space looks great:
Check out the modern lounge area near the dressing rooms:
They have an iPad available at the table to use while you’re waiting. The attention to detail is incredible. That map in the background is a custom designed screenprint using a United States Geological Survey map. (Available for sale as well.)
Venture Men’s Goods is located at 3571 Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Lafayette, next to Radio Shack.
From the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce:
What: 16th Annual Lafayette Art & Wine Festival
When: Saturday, September 15, 2012 from 10am – 7pm AND
Sunday, September 16, 2012 from 10am – 6pm
Where:
Downtown Lafayette, California (Google Map) – Off Highway 24, west of the I-680/Highway 24 interchange. Download 2010 Art & Wine Festival MapDirections:
Take BART to Lafayette OR
- Take Highway 24 to Central Lafayette exit and follow Festival signs.
- Free parking available at Lafayette BART station (upper lot).
Ride your bike to the festival and use our Free Bike Valet Parking at 82 Lafayette Circle (just behind the Art Stage).
Continuous shuttle service between BART & the Festival.
For GPS purposes enter the address 3535 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Lafayette, CAAdmission – FREE
Admission to the Festival is free. However, you must purchase a Festival glass and drink tickets if you wish to drink the beer or wine that is poured “on the street” or in the Premium Wine Pavilion.
Dogs are allowed, but please consider this: Dogs must be kept on a leash and in your control at all times; If you attend early in the day, between 10am-1pm, the pavement is cooler, the temperature is lower and there is ample room for your dog; as the event progresses, it does get very crowded and can become dangerous for your pet; and dogs should not go into the food court.
Featuring
- More than 275 fine arts and crafts booths.
- Restaurants, food vendors, wineries and microbreweries.
- Continuous musical entertainment presented on three stages.
- Kids area with entertainment and activities for kids of all ages.
- Special exhibit and sale of work by local artists.
The entertainment schedule is here.
Wine and food vendor info is here.
Lafayette is considering building a roundabout on Mt. Diablo Blvd near the Gazebo and some people are not happy about this possibility. There are even protesters out with signs warning about traffic and loss of parking spots. Check out the official roundabout project page here, including the staff report here.
The Lafayette staff believe that a roundabout will allow traffic to slow down but continue to flow freely, make it safer for pedestrians to cross, and will contribute positively to streetscape design, displaying including public art.
Check out an aerial view of the roundabout:
And the proposed location of the roundabout:
I have experience crossing here because I go to Lamorinda Crossfit at the end of Blackwood Lane and we sometimes cross over to run on the Lamorinda trail on the other side near the gazebo. Frankly it hasn’t been that crowded to wait more than 30 seconds before crossing, and usually we can cross immediately. Also, when I think of roundabouts I think of busy streets on multiple sides so I can’t quite understand why a roundabout here would be all that useful considering the other intersecting streets are rarely used. The fact that the lanes will merge into one on both sides of Mt. Diablo Blvd. could certainly be annoying to people driving. On the other hand, it would be more convenient for pedestrians to cross the street, and might look pretty cool.
So for the Friday question of the day, do you think the proposed Lafayette roundabout on Mt. Diablo Blvd. is a good idea?