Wes Anderson Gets a Room

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Wes Anderson Gets a Room

Approaching Wes Anderson‘s mostly delightful Grand Budapest Hotel can give you that same foreboding you feel when encountering the word “artisanal.” It’s seriously underfemaled, and it pauses to congratulate itself for its cleverness. At worst, Anderson is a director of ducky films, but this nested story of European skullduggery seems to have more of a spine than anything he’s made since Fantastic Mr. Fox.

The Grand Budapest Hotel is a tale told by the proprietor of a declining luxury hotel during the 1960s in the Slovenia-like nation of Zubrowka. F. Murray Abraham is the turtlenecked proprietor Moustafa, a man who looks as haunted as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.

In a conversation over dinner, Moustafa tells a young writer (Jude Law) about the life he led between the wars. In those days, he was mentored by the suave concierge M. Gustave (Ralph Fiennes, terrifically louche), a heavily scented, indifferently heterosexual squire to wealthy elderly women. When Gustave’s oldest client (Tilda Swinton, grotesque in old-age makeup) bequeaths him a valuable painting the upstart hotelier becomes involved with blueblooded fascists played by Adrien Brody and Willem Dafoe as his leather-wrapped thug, Jopling.

Jailbreaks, alpine assassination, harrowing castles and political discord make this an unusually ripsnorting Anderson film. Far more like him are his asides: mentions of a far-off land called Dutch Tanganyika, rides on the trams of the gloomy capital city, Lutz, and a visit to the Bureau of Labor and Servitude.

Anderson styles his productions American Empirical, and he finally seems to have a fully running studio: a script department, a tabletop special effects lab, a first-rate music department and a stable of actors, including an artistically disfigured Saoirse Ronan, Harvey Keitel as a bald convict and Jeff Goldblum in spectacles that make him look like Sartre.

‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ opens soon in select theaters.

The Chekhov List

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The Chekhov List

Anton Chekhov’s plays are like magic tricks.

Whether writing vast multi-actor epics or slapstick short-form farces, Chekhov had a way of burying the typical forward action of his plots in the evolving emotional lives of his characters. In so doing, Chekhov keeps audiences looking for the story in the wrong places until—abracadabra!—we suddenly see that the real story was happening somewhere else.

For an audience willing to be patient and enjoy the musicality and ingenious humor of the language, an evening of Chekhov—if performed by actors who get what they’re doing—can be an awe-inspiring experience. And for actors, the chance to bounce one’s craft against the massive wall of Chekhov’s genius can be transformative and life-changing.

Which is why theater companies love doing Chekhov.

In Santa Rosa, two separate companies have just opened shows by Chekhov, giving audiences a chance to see the vast range of his talent, from a cluster of his playful one-acts being staged by the Imaginists to what many believe to be Chekhov’s crowning achievement, the mournfully brilliant Cherry Orchard, presented by a cast of student actors and professionals at Santa Rosa Junior College.

Asking beginning actors to tackle Chekhov is a little like sending a rookie out during the Super Bowl, but college theater arts programs would not be doing their job if they didn’t allow students to have a go at a Chekhov play now and then.

Director Leslie McCauley has built an actual cherry orchard inside the Burbank Theater, with faux trees all over the place, including a few out in the seats. The story of a family of once wealthy landowners making all the wrong decisions as they face the loss of their once-thriving estate will have plenty of resonance for modern audiences, some of whom might be surprised to discover Chekhov used the phrase “the 99 percent” to describe the have-nots in a play 110 years old.

At the Imaginists, Tobacco, Sparks, Fireworks, Chekhov looks to be a typically inventive bit of experimental theater, with three of Chekhov’s funnier shorts. On the Harmfulness of Tobacco is a one-person play in which a man attempts to give a lecture but can’t stay on the subject. The Proposal is a farce about marriage and the art of arguing. And Dirty Tragedians and Unclean Playwrights is, well, flat-out indescribable.

Whether in the mood for Chekhov as a full meal or as tasty little bites, now is a good time to sink your teeth into one of the greatest writers who ever lived.

Thursday’s Here

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Thursday’s Here

Pop-smart and rock-solid, the eclectic indie music of San Francisco’s Ash Thursday shines, with vocalist-guitarist Ash Scheiding turning in an impressive and expressive batch of songs on the band’s latest EP, Bravery.

Raised in Point Reyes Station, Scheiding spent her formative years in Sonoma County, fronting acts like Escape Engine and No More Stereo, and building an intensely personal catalogue of rock albums with an ever-evolving flair. Along with Scheiding in Ash Thursday are Niki Marie (vocals, keyboards), Betsy Adams (guitar), Andrew Ryan (drums) and Anderai Maldonado (bass).

Naturally collaborative, the band sound tightly focused on Bravery, the follow-up to the band’s 2013 debut EP, The Strength to Come Apart. Over the course of Bravery’s six tracks, Ash Thursday deliver electro-backed foot stompers, straight-up pop ballads and emotionally charged rock anthems. They appear with Santa Rosa indie ruffians Manzanita Falls in Santa Rosa on Saturday, March 15, at Heritage Public House. 1901 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa. 9pm. 707.540.0395.

Beef Don’t Fail Me Now

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Beef Don’t Fail Me Now

For eons, I’ve eaten ravenously in the spiffy restaurants on the plaza in Sonoma. From now on, however, my first choice will be Burgers & Vine (“B&V” to those in the know), the much buzzed-about eatery, saloon, live music joint, ice cream parlor and mini dance palace.

Co-created by Codi Binkley and Carlo Cavallo, B&V is sweeping stolid Sonoma off its feet. Sure, there are other destinations on the plaza that offer burgers, but there’s no real competition.

B&V is a bold experiment for Cavallo, though he’s already an award-winning chef who has prepared gourmet food for years at the Sonoma-Meritage Oyster Bar & Grille. “I’m going in a radically different direction from what I’ve done my whole career,” he says, a week before his new haunt opened to the public.

At B&V, the all-American hamburger is king, barbecue is the crown prince, and milk shakes—with or without booze—are a banquet by themselves. Beers, with names like Draft Punk Pale Ale, are brewed in the vast basement of the building, which was once the old Sonoma Creamery. At the elegant 42-foot-long burnished redwood bar, savvy bartenders serve exotic cocktails. There’s also an old-fashioned lounge on one side of the room and a nifty dance floor for romancing cheek-to-cheek on weekends when bands take the stage.

Seven years ago, Binkley, who was born and raised Dallas, Texas, and Cavallo, who hails from Verona, Italy, put their heads together and came up with the bright idea for a wine country barbecue joint that would appeal to kids, parents, tourists and townies. Texas barbecue and Willie Nelson’s brand of country music fueled Binkley’s boyhood; Cavallo didn’t wolf down his first hamburger (a Whopper at Burger King) until he arrived in America.

Still, barbecue isn’t totally new territory for the chef. In 2009, Cavallo won the top prize in the National Beef Cook-Off, sponsored by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. Now, after seven years of prep, he’s having the time of his life flipping burgers at B&V’s state-of-the-art grill. “If chefs like Thomas Keller at the French Laundry can flip burgers, I can, too,” Cavallo says.

Now he’s cooking juicy one-third-pound hamburgers that come with all the fixings on brioche or gluten-free buns ($8). The beef is locally sourced, and lovingly handled. There’s a tasty vegan burger ($10) and a scrumptious surf-and-turf plate with Kobe beef, prawns and truffle aioli ($16). The snazzy kitchen will also serve up hefty portions of oak-smoked brisket, ribs, prime rib and chicken (prices to be set).

“We’ve created a place for the whole community to relax, have a good time and feel at home,” Brinkley adds with a smile.

On opening day, I sample the spicy chicken wings ($6), the hand-cut fries ($3) and the wild Alaskan salmon burger ($13). I can’t resist a milkshake with bourbon, vanilla gelato and caramel ($6). Bartender Ashley Cuellar watches me eat with glee. “This place is very bohemian,” she says. “We’re going with the flow. I see you are, too.”

Irish Ales are Smiling

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Irish Ales are Smiling

One afternoon in the week leading up to Saint Patrick’s Day, it was harder to locate a single Irish-style red ale than to find a four-leaf clover (of which I once found three in an afternoon).

Bless Moylan’s Brewery and their faithful for keeping Paddy’s Irish Red Ale (22-ounce) readily available in local markets. Once a personal favorite, this bronze-hued ale (quite a bit lighter than Smithwick’s, for Irish ale geeks out there) seems less robust than past batches, but there’s something about the sweet, malty aroma that distinguishes it from the average California pale ale. Sister company Marin Brewing makes a St. Brendan’s Irish Red Ale.

Bless also newcomer Warped Brewing in Sebastopol. Assistant brewer Mark Lagris says that in their fifth week of operation, they already have an Irish red ale settling in the tank. It will be available on tap by Saint Patrick’s Day. Tentatively called Red Circle of Death, it’s “Irish” because of the particulars of the mash bill, says Lagris, and it’s fermented with a specific yeast strain.

In Petaluma, Dempsey’s Brewery has, at times, released its Sonoma Irish Ale in 22-ounce bottles. On a darker note, despite advertised bottles, Third Street Aleworks’ Blarney Sisters Dry Irish Stout is currently only available on tap. For me, Blarney Sisters is a successful Irish-style stout largely because it doesn’t remind me of soy sauce (which is not necessarily a bad quality). Mellow but substantial, it’s a smooth mouthful of charred grain and cocoa, with a reasonably compact head. Also rich and dark, but weighing in at just 5 percent alcohol, Moylan’s releases Dragoons Dry Irish Stout in keg and bottle (which I was unable to locate this time around), while in Cloverdale, Ruth McGowan’s Dry Irish Stout is just 4.5 percent ABV.

It might be argued that the whole point of these sorts of themed drinking holidays is to obtain said nation’s bestselling alcoholic beverage, drink up, and be done with it. There’s plenty of Guinness, so who needs Irish-style stout? Well, there was a time when the term “beer snob” was as laughably incongruous as, say, “Irish real estate bubble.” It’s a different time. And I like to have delicious choices from this style of ale that, like Guinness, tastes best when fresh and served not many miles from where it’s made.

March 13: West Coast Ink: Printmaking from San Diego to Seattle at Sonoma University Art Gallery

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March 13: West Coast Ink: Printmaking from San Diego to Seattle at Sonoma University Art Gallery

In the age of digital, there is something so fundamentally cool about being able to hold an art print in hand, crafted in paint and paper, etched or layered or stenciled. This week, Sonoma State University and the Southern Graphics Council together collect a huge array of works by printmakers from up and down the West Coast, representing a wide range of styles and techniques. Highlights of the exhibit include the contrasting contemporary woodcutting of Seattle’s Chris Papa, the wooly blanket art of L.A. artist Chris Johanson and the fine prints of Santa Rosa artist and teacher Kevin Fletcher. “West Coast Ink: Printmaking from San Diego to Seattle” opens with a reception on Thursday, March 13, at the Sonoma State University Art Gallery. 1801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park. 4pm. 707.664.2295.

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March 14: Savion Glover at Marin Center’s Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium

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March 14: Savion Glover at Marin Center’s Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium

Since being taught to tap at age 14, master tap dancer Savion Glover has made it his life’s work. Forming the HooFeRzCLuB (TLHS) dance ensemble in his hometown of Newark, N.J., Glover is most known as the Tony Award—winning choreographer of the 1996 Broadway hit Bring in ’da Noise, Bring in ’da Funk. Equal parts virtuoso and innovator, Glover brings his latest production, STePz, to the North Bay. Combing the best of traditional dance and Glover’s own young and funk styling, and backed by a versatile ensemble, this exuberant dance celebration happens Friday, March 14, at the Marin Center’s Veterans Memorial Auditorium. 10 Avenues of the Flags, San Rafael. 8pm. $20—$45. 415.499.6800.

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March 14: Dave Barry at Book Passage and Mystic Theatre

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March 14: Dave Barry at Book Passage and Mystic Theatre

There’s no topic that humorist and author Dave Barry won’t take on, no matter how little he knows about it. The Pulitzer Prize—winning writer of a nationally syndicated column that ran for 22 years tackles everyday subjects like travel and money in humorous, insightful ways. Barry’s latest book, You Can Date Boys When You’re Forty, includes stories of parenthood and family in a fast-paced modern world. Looking back on chaperoning a Justin Bieber concert and bat mitzvahs alike, Barry offers up his signature witticism twice on March 14, first at noon at Book Passage as part of the store’s Literary Luncheon series (51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera; $55 with lunch and book; 415.927.0960), then at an evening appearance at the Mystic Theatre (23 Petaluma Blvd N., Petaluma; $15—$35; 707.765.2121) at 8pm.

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March 18: Catalyst Quarter at Shed

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March 18: Catalyst Quarter at Shed

Breaking down stuffy stereotypes with their casual chamber music concert series, Brave New Music host New York—based Catalyst Quartet at Healdsburg’s Shed, the innovate agrarian center, for an evening of music in an unconstrained atmosphere. The famed quartet themselves are dedicated to modernizing the perception of classical music, presenting here pieces by acclaimed contemporary composers Philip Glass, Joan Tower and Latin jazz composer Paquito D’Rivera, as well as an original piece. Craft beers and local wines will be on hand for this light affair, as Catalyst Quartet performs on Tuesday, March 18, at Shed. 25 North St., Healdsburg. 7pm. $25. 707.431.7622.

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Tails Wag Over Fido Alfresco Bill

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Tails Wag Over Fido Alfresco Bill

We love dogs here at the North Bay Bohemian, and our pack of politically engaged, editorial-office mutts is voting Yea on a new pup-friendly proposal from state lawmaker Mariko Yamada. The 4th District assemblymember has offered AB-1965 to her Sacramento colleagues, a bill that would let towns and localities decide whether Fido the foodie is welcome in outdoor-dining areas. California public health laws now restrict beagles in bistros, dalmations in diners, terriers in tea shops, and, of course, pit bulls in brew pubs. But county officials in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara recently enacted new laws that let dogs dine alfresco, and Yamada’s bill would eliminate the legal limbo those cities created by lifting the state’s blanket restriction on dogs-in-restaurants. “While the outdoor areas of some restaurants are well-suited for accommodating dog owners, state law still prohibits the presence of most animals in food facilities,” writes Yamada in an info-sheet on AB-1965, “and makes no distinction based on their location in those facilities.” Yamada says her bill would “let public health inspectors focus on more dangerous public health risks” than, say, a slobbering shih tzu snarfing your wood-fired pizza on the Cafe Reyes patio. The editorial hounds at the Bohemian also point out that the Yamada bill could ease demand for doggie bags – very eco-friendly. They do caution, however, against ordering chocolate-covered grapes for dessert.

Telly Boy and Mixli Mutt demand a place at the table

  • Telly Boy and Mixli Mutt demand a place at the table

Wes Anderson Gets a Room

Approaching Wes Anderson's mostly delightful Grand Budapest Hotel can give you that same foreboding you feel when encountering the word "artisanal." It's seriously underfemaled, and it pauses to congratulate itself for its cleverness. At worst, Anderson is a director of ducky films, but this nested story of European skullduggery seems to have more of a spine than anything he's...
Read more

The Chekhov List

Anton Chekhov's plays are like magic tricks. Whether writing vast multi-actor epics or slapstick short-form farces, Chekhov had a way of burying the typical forward action of his plots in the evolving emotional lives of his characters. In so doing, Chekhov keeps audiences looking for the story in the wrong places until—abracadabra!—we suddenly see that the real story was happening...
Read more

Thursday’s Here

Pop-smart and rock-solid, the eclectic indie music of San Francisco's Ash Thursday shines, with vocalist-guitarist Ash Scheiding turning in an impressive and expressive batch of songs on the band's latest EP, Bravery. Raised in Point Reyes Station, Scheiding spent her formative years in Sonoma County, fronting acts like Escape Engine and No More Stereo, and building an intensely personal catalogue...
Read more

Beef Don’t Fail Me Now

For eons, I've eaten ravenously in the spiffy restaurants on the plaza in Sonoma. From now on, however, my first choice will be Burgers & Vine ("B&V" to those in the know), the much buzzed-about eatery, saloon, live music joint, ice cream parlor and mini dance palace. Co-created by Codi Binkley and Carlo Cavallo, B&V is sweeping stolid Sonoma off...
Read more

Irish Ales are Smiling

One afternoon in the week leading up to Saint Patrick's Day, it was harder to locate a single Irish-style red ale than to find a four-leaf clover (of which I once found three in an afternoon). Bless Moylan's Brewery and their faithful for keeping Paddy's Irish Red Ale (22-ounce) readily available in local markets. Once a personal favorite, this bronze-hued...
Read more

March 13: West Coast Ink: Printmaking from San Diego to Seattle at Sonoma University Art Gallery

In the age of digital, there is something so fundamentally cool about being able to hold an art print in hand, crafted in paint and paper, etched or layered or stenciled. This week, Sonoma State University and the Southern Graphics Council together collect a huge array of works by printmakers from up and down the West Coast, representing a...
Read more

March 14: Savion Glover at Marin Center’s Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium

Since being taught to tap at age 14, master tap dancer Savion Glover has made it his life’s work. Forming the HooFeRzCLuB (TLHS) dance ensemble in his hometown of Newark, N.J., Glover is most known as the Tony Award—winning choreographer of the 1996 Broadway hit Bring in ’da Noise, Bring in ’da Funk. Equal parts virtuoso and innovator, Glover...
Read more

March 14: Dave Barry at Book Passage and Mystic Theatre

There’s no topic that humorist and author Dave Barry won’t take on, no matter how little he knows about it. The Pulitzer Prize—winning writer of a nationally syndicated column that ran for 22 years tackles everyday subjects like travel and money in humorous, insightful ways. Barry’s latest book, You Can Date Boys When You’re Forty, includes stories of parenthood...
Read more

March 18: Catalyst Quarter at Shed

Breaking down stuffy stereotypes with their casual chamber music concert series, Brave New Music host New York—based Catalyst Quartet at Healdsburg’s Shed, the innovate agrarian center, for an evening of music in an unconstrained atmosphere. The famed quartet themselves are dedicated to modernizing the perception of classical music, presenting here pieces by acclaimed contemporary composers Philip Glass, Joan Tower...
Read more

Tails Wag Over Fido Alfresco Bill

Law would end ban on outdoor dining with your dog
Read more
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