Arts Devo

Keep Chico happy Arts DEVO isn’t overly sentimental about Chico’s iconic places. I’m OK with old institutions retiring (The Graduate) and making way for the new (Burgers and Brew). But I do get super bummed when I hear that something glorious and rich with character (El Rey Theatre) might get replaced with something lame (offices in a gutted-out old building). As many of you have likely heard, the El Rey is in danger of being sold to developers who won’t keep it a performance space (see Ken Smith’s story on page 8). That would be soul-crushing. We can’t let it happen. Join the coalition (El Rey Theater Alliance—search Facebook), donate to the cause (search “Save the El Rey” at www.generosity.com) and pray for an angel donor to come along.

Posthumous props One of my all-time favorite Chico arts-makers, Chico State theater professor Katie Whitlock, died on Dec. 7 of last year, and just last month it was announced that she was the recipient of a national award for her work in theater education. On Aug. 22, the Association for Theatre in Higher Education named Whitlock the 2016 Oscar Brockett Outstanding Teacher of Theatre in Higher Education. It’s well-deserved recognition for a career of innovation and inspiration that will live on in her students and the Chico State Theater Department.

Art at the station An “experimental sci-fi show” sounds just about right for creative and often experimental art couple Sienna Orlando Lalaguna and Trevor Lalaguna. Their new two-person show, Voyanic: Space Gardens and Alt Beings, featuring figurative drawings by Trevor and abstract ceramic wall pieces by Sienna, is up now at Great Northern Coffee, and there will be a reception this Friday, Sept. 9, 5-7 p.m.

Chico Beer Month? Just start drinking ridiculous amounts of water right now, because from start to finish, October in Chico is going to be the best month of the year for fans of craft beer. It actually starts in September, with Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. kicking off Oktoberfest on Sept. 30. There are two weekends of sausages and suds under the big tent this year—Sept. 30-Oct. 1 and Oct. 7-8—with both Saturdays already sold out. Visit www.sierranevada.com/oktoberfest for more info.

Overlapping with that second weekend will be Chico Beer Week, Oct. 6-Oct. 15, with 10 days worth of tap takeovers, style nights, beer/food pairings and more presented by your favorite local craft brew purveyors (get your events listed in the Chico Beer Week calendar by sending an email to chicobeerweek@gmail.com). Kicking off the whole week is Brewfork: A Craft-Beer and Food Truck Rally presented by CN&R and Fork in the Road, Oct. 6, at Patrick Ranch. Visit www.chicobeerweek.net for all your Chico Beer Week news.

Finally, as if that all wasn’t enough, the following weekend, on Saturday, Oct. 22, it’s the return of Sierra Nevada’s much-loved Single, Fresh, Wet & Wild Hop Harvest Festival, featuring hop-forward beers from the best breweries in the country. And tickets are on sale … now! Visit www.sierranevada.com/hopharvestfestival.