ENTERTAINMENT NOTES: 'Bon Appetit!' on menu for Opera's 'Brunch' streaming fundraiser

Mezzo-soprano Sarah Dailey plays Julia Child in Lee Hoiby's mini opera “Bon Appetit!”, part of Opera in the Rock “Cheers to the Members Who Brunch” virtual fundraiser, streaming at 2 p.m. Saturday May 23.
(Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Wendy Kelley)
Mezzo-soprano Sarah Dailey plays Julia Child in Lee Hoiby's mini opera “Bon Appetit!”, part of Opera in the Rock “Cheers to the Members Who Brunch” virtual fundraiser, streaming at 2 p.m. Saturday May 23. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Wendy Kelley)

Elsewhere in entertainment, events and the arts:

Hearing Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven's "Symphony No. 7" will be the main work on the program for the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra's sixth and final Masterworks concert of the abbreviated 2020-21 season, 7:30 p.m. today and Friday to a small in-person audience at Robinson Center Performance Hall, 426 W. Markham St. at Broadway, Little Rock. Social distancing and mask-wearing will be in force.

The concert will be recorded and will stream via the orchestra's website, arkansassymphony.org/news-events/beethoven-seven, starting at 7:30 p.m. May 29.

The program opens with "Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout" by Gabriela Lena Frank, who was born with a neurosensory high-moderate/near-profound hearing loss and found inspiration from Beethoven, who began losing his hearing when he was in his 30s. Geoffrey Robson will conduct.

Tickets — in-person and for the virtual stream — are "pay what you can," with a minimum donation of $10. Concert sponsor is the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

'Live at the Plaza' 2

Ballet Arkansas will be "Live at the Plaza" for a second weekend of free recreational classes and performances, Friday-Sunday at Argenta Plaza, 510 Main St., North Little Rock.

Performances at 11:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. Friday, 6 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday include excerpts from the classical "Raymonda" suite, a new work by Yoshito Sakuraba and pieces choreographed by company members: Paul Tillman's "Echo," Matthew Larson's "Satie" and, for the finale of each performance, "Water Work" by Deanna Stanton, featuring the plaza water wall. All performances are free; attendees can take their own lawn chairs.

Recreational classes, sponsored by Acansa Arts Festival of the South, run from 8 a.m.-noon Saturday and Sunday, including "Dancing with Dogs" at 10 a.m. Saturday. In case of inclement weather, visit BalletArkansas.org/plaza for up-to-date schedules.

Meanwhile, North Little Rock's Main Street will be closed from Broadway to Fifth Street for "Argenta Dogtown Throwdown," Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon, with outdoor seating on Main Street and music.

Opera for brunch

Opera in the Rock's "Cheers to the Members Who Brunch" virtual fundraiser, streaming at 2 p.m. Saturday, features the mini opera "Bon Appetit!" by Lee Hoiby, with mezzo-soprano Sarah Dailey as Julia Child.

The event will also include a performance by Nia Renee, Little Rock Central High School senior and recent contestant on "American Idol's" Season 19, and opera classics. There will also be an online silent auction.

Tickets are $35; memberships in the opera company's newly launched Membership Guild start at $12 per month. Guild members and ticket holders will receive login information to view the show online the day of the event. Call (501) 681-9640 or visit oitr.org/guild.

'Spots of Time'

"Spots of Time," paintings by Little Rock artist Rebecca Thompson, go on display Friday at Cantrell Gallery, 8208 Cantrell Road, Little Rock, with a 6-8 p.m. reception, with a limited number of guests in the gallery and wine-and-cheese refreshments served (rather than serve yourself). The gallery requests guests wear masks. Thompson took the title for the exhibition, up through July 10, from "a Wordsworth poem that I have always loved." Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday or by appointment. Call (501) 224-1335 or visit cantrellgallery.com.

'Cool Globes'

"Carpool" by Cheryl Steiger is one of the 26 "Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet" exhibition, opening Saturday at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/courtesy of the Clinton Foundation)
"Carpool" by Cheryl Steiger is one of the 26 "Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet" exhibition, opening Saturday at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/courtesy of the Clinton Foundation)

"Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet" — 26 artist-created globes that present solutions to climate change — goes on display Saturday throughout the park at the Clinton Presidential Center, 1200 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock.

"Cool Globes" founder Wendy Abrams announced the project as a "Commitment to Action" during the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in 2005. The exhibit premiered in Chicago the following year and has since been on display in dozens of cities throughout the country and around the world.

Since the globes are outdoors, "admission" is free. The Clinton Presidential Library and Museum remains closed. Visit clintonpresidentialcenter.org or facebook.com/clintoncenter.

Pine Bluff retrospective

The multimedia "1995-2021: A Retrospective of Jerry Colburn," a collection of Colburn's inkblots, collages and music, goes on display with a drop-in reception, 5-7 p.m. today at the Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas, 701 S. Main St., Pine Bluff. The exhibition will remain up through Aug. 28. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. Tuesday- Friday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free. Sponsors are June and the late Edmond Freeman. Call (870) 536-3375 or visit asc701.org.

'Magical' opening

Magic Springs Theme and Water Park, on East Grand Avenue (U.S. 70) in Hot Springs, opens for weekend operations on Saturday, and for weekday operations on May 31.

The park will be open 11 a.m.-6 p.m; the water park, from noon-6 p.m. The park will continue to follow rigorous sanitizing protocols and social distancing measures with guidance from state and federal health agencies. Masks will be optional but the park continues to encourage guests to wear a mask while indoors or when social distancing from other guests outside of their group.

Single-day park admission (all prices are plus tax) is $59.99, $39.99 for children and senior citizens. Season passes are $69.99; Gold Season Passes, which include a meal plan (one meal per day at one of the park's three eateries) are $139.98. Buy a pass by May 31 and get $10 in Magic Springs Bonus Bucks. Visit MagicSprings.com.

Bluegrass Monday

Seth Mulder and Midnight Run — (from left) Colton Powers, Ben Watlington, Seth Mulder and Max Etling — performs Monday at the Collins Theatre in Paragould, part of Jonesboro public radio station KASU‘s resuming Bluegrass Monday series. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
Seth Mulder and Midnight Run — (from left) Colton Powers, Ben Watlington, Seth Mulder and Max Etling — performs Monday at the Collins Theatre in Paragould, part of Jonesboro public radio station KASU‘s resuming Bluegrass Monday series. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)

Gatlinburg, Tenn.-based Seth Mulder and Midnight Run — Mulder, vocals and mandolin; Ben Watlington, vocals and guitar; Colton Powers, banjo and vocals; and Mat Etling, bass, with guest fiddler Max Silverstein — performs for KASU-FM, 91.9's resuming Bluegrass Monday concert series, 7 p.m. Monday at the Collins Theatre, 120 W. Emerson St., Paragould. Admission is $10, free for those 18 and younger. Visit kasu.org/tickets; for information, call (870) 972-2367, email mscarbro@astate.edu or visit the BluegrassMonday Facebook page.

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