Arts DEVOté

Looking way ahead
The last notes of the recessional have barely finished ringing out, and Chico’s grand masters of performing-arts production are already ready to rock for the 2008-09 school year. For the second year in a row, Arts DEVOté gives major kudos to director Dan DeWayne and the Chico Performances crew for putting together a balanced, eclectic schedule.

Mixed in with the classic productions (Nutcracker , Dec. 11-14; Peking Acrobats, Jan. 20; Keeping Dance Alive!, March 6-8), the classic Chico faves (Tommy Emmanuel, Sept. 19; John Sebastian & David Grisman, Nov. 6; Joe Craven, April 30) and classic world music imports (Soweto Gospel Choir, Oct. 12; Afro-Cuban All Stars, Feb. 24; Habib Koité & Bamada, April 4) are another 42 shows that range from the fun (Cirque Mehanics: Birdhouse Factory, Sept. 17; Best of Momix, Oct. 28; Mad Science presents CSI: Live!, Nov. 9; The Art of Belly Dance, Jan. 30) to the exotic (Dya Singh—Sikh spiritual music, Sept. 11) to the excellent (Leo Kottke & Loudon Wainwright III, Oct. 8; S.F. Symphony, Jan. 22; The Second City on Tour, Jan. 28; Turtle Island Quartet w/Cyrus Chestnut, Feb. 17) to the somewhat bizarre (Nunsense starring Sally Struthers, Oct. 2).

Season info will be online at www.chicoperformances.com beginning June 19. Series tickets go on sale July 1 and single tix Aug. 4.

Looking less way ahead
Not to sound like a jerk or anything, but for some folks, when summer break begins and the kids are home all day, the vacation for them is actually over. A.D. has no kids, so he’s not really worried about it, but if you’re not ready to give up every minute of your quiet time, get those brats signed up for as many summer classes as you can. Some options for the kids:

• Summer Workshops at Lyon Books: Educational sessions on arts, space, nature, creative writing and more. Ages 6-11. June/July. Info: 891-3338.

• Summer Dance Camp: Chico Creek Dance Centre’s summer camp. Ages 5-10. Info: 205-5571, www.chicocreekdance.com.

• Summer Camp at the Museum: Hands-on learning about cultures around the world with Chico State’s Museum of Anthropology. Ages 5-11. June/July. Info: 898-5397, www.csuchico.edu/anth/Museum/ed_summer.html.

• Camp Journey 2008: Boys & Girls Club’s summer camp with weekly activities on sports, nature, magic and more. Ages 6-12. June/July. Info: 899-0335, www.bgcanorthvalley.org.

• Camp Chico Creek: Chico Creek Nature Center’s environmental education day camps. Ages 5-11. June/July and August. Info: 891-4671, www.bidwellpark.org.

• Janet Turner Print Museum Summer Art Academy: Professional 2-D and 3-D arts instruction. Ages 7-18. July and August. Info: 680-4740, www.janetturner.org.

• Collective Sound Summer Music Academy: Chico State’s annual rock band camp. Ages 12-21. July & August. Info: 354-4045, www.csuchico.edu/mus/ethos.

Old is new again
The annual Fresh Ink Festival opens June 5, and for this spring’s edition, the Blue Room is returning to its old format. Instead of choosing local writers and giving them a week to write scripts that share one common element, the community theater instead simply chose to produce its four favorites from the one-acts that were submitted. This year’s chosen script-makers include CN&R contributors Craig Blamer and Steve Metzger, which A.D. suspects means you’re in for pure comedic excellence.