The Danville Lyric Opera Company founded last year with the goal of promoting a traditional forum for classical opera and to educate young audiences about the sublime art of Opera will present Carmen, by Georges Bizet on Sunday, June 29th at 3:00 PM at the Town Hall Theater (www.townhalltheater.com), 3535 School Street in Lafayette (925) 283-1557, danvilleopera@earthlink.net
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Legendary entertainer Diamond Dave, who performs regularly at Petar’s, will be singing and providing some riveting tunes for a dinner dance next Sunday, June 29 at the Moraga Country Club. Open to non-members. 6:00 - 10:00 p.m. $35. per person. Call 376-2200 for more information.
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California Shakespeare Theater presents “An Ideal Husband.” July 2 – 4 previews; opens July 5 through July 27. A sharply elegant comedy about a Victorian villainess' secret which threatens to destroy a seemingly perfect political marriage. An Ideal Husband is, according to Moscone, “Wilde's most modern play. It’s about what goes on behind closed doors in the grand political arena, where the human meets the iconic, and where the characters—and the audience—confront their desire for the ideals in love and in leadership, in ways that are piercingly funny and amazingly relevant." All performances are presented at the intimate Bruns Amphitheater, 100 Gateway Boulevard in Orinda. Grounds open two hours prior to show time for on-site picnicking. For more details about Cal Shakes, visit
www.calshakes.org.
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Comedy "Butterflies Are Free" by Leonard Gershe performed through July 27 at Diablo Actors Ensemble Theatre, 1345 Locust Street, Walnut Creek. Tickets $10 (Thursdays), $22 seniors/students $25 general (Fridays – Sundays) 925-482-5110, daeinfo@comcast.net, www.diabloactors.com
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Free Concerts at Moraga Commons Park Thursday evenings, 6:30pm – 8:30pm: June 26 HouseRockers (Rock and Roll;) July 4 Larry Lynch & the Mob (Rock and Roll); July 10 Boothill (Country & Western). The snack bar opens at 6:00 pm.

Orinda Community Center Park Summer Concert in the Park Series on Tuesdays from June through July. Bring a picnic and enjoy the free music: July 1st Silver Spur (Country Western); July 8th Pladdohg (Celtic Rock and Funk); July 15th The Crisis (Rock and Blues.)

Orinda Starlight Village Players’ 2008 Outdoor Theater, Orinda Community Center Park. Murder on the Nile by Agatha Christie thru June 28th Fridays and Saturdays at 8:30 pm. I Hate Hamlet by Paul Rudnick opens July 18th. Regular admission: $15; seniors/students - $7.50. All 3 shows: $35; seniors/students - $21 Tickets at Box Office or call (925) 253-1191 or 255-3295 (after 7 pm)

Exhibition at the Lafayette Gallery --California Dreaming--through August 9th. The gallery artists are inspired by the California landscape, the summer warmth, and the particular light that is unique to California. The artists of the Lafayette Gallery are all California artists. The paintings, prints, watercolors, photographs, and ceramic works, all reflect the vibrant life of the artists who created them. Gallery Hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 11 am to 5 pm. 925-284-2788, www.lafayettegallery.net
See story on this page.
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Forty-nine rarely seen oil paintings and thirty-eight pastels and drawings by Carl Sammons from a vast and extraordinary private collection will be featured in at the Hearst Art Galley of Saint Mary’s College from July 12 through Sept. 21. A talented and precise draftsman, Sammons painted a wide range of subjects, from the flowers and birds of Golden Gate Park to thundering ocean breakers to the rolling hills of the coastal ranges to the Southern California deserts. Opening Weekend Events: Sun., July 13, 2 – 4 p.m.
Free Reception and Jazz Performance Exhibition Admission: $3 Gallery Hours: Wed. – Sun., 11 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. 925.631.4379 www.hearstartgallery.org
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“The Glover Group: Plein Air Painting Exhibition” July 16 through August 12, 2008. For the past 25 years Glover has led her class of 25 intermediate to advanced level oil painters to Bay Area vineyards, ranches and waterways to capture the scenes on the spot. Orinda Library Gallery, 24 Orinda Way. Visit with this happy and productive group to view their colorful paintings of local sites at their reception on July 24th from 5:30 to 7pm at the Orinda Library. For more information on the painting classes, phone the Orinda Community Center at (925) 254-2445.
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"Fiesta Time" at the Moraga Art Gallery features the work of two artists who live in Moraga: Angelica Samamea, a 27 year resident, is a painter who generally works either with acrylics or watercolor in a fluid improvisational style. Connie Robertson has her own studio in Moraga for cutting, grinding and fusing glass. She has enjoyed experimenting in glass jewelry. Moraga Art Gallery, 570 Center St, Rheem Valley Shopping Center/next to Longs Drugs.

no events

Fourth of July activities in Lamorinda: pancake breakfasts, races, parades, music and fireworks-see page 18 and 19

Sat, June 28, 2 pm—Computer technology and animation—Moraga Library. Animation presented by Steve Kitzing, for all ages, an informative presentation on techniques, tools and art of 3D.
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Sat, June 28, noon -3:00pm Peace Center Membership Meeting and Potluck (rescheduled from the previously announced June 21) Sister Sandra Price will speak about her work building schools in Nicaragua since 1981. Mt. Diablo Peace & Justice Center, 55 Eckley Lane, Walnut Creek
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Amazon Oil: Crude Stories and Crude Images -The Biggest Oil Spill on Earth Tuesday, July 1, 7:00 pm- Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church, 55 Eckley Lane, Walnut Creek (925) 933-7850, maryalice@mtdpc.org
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Friends of the Orinda Library July 4th book sale - will be part of
Orinda's 4th of July celebration. Booksale will be 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
and will be in the sorting room and garage breezeway. This booksale
will offer a fine place for everyone to find something for summertime
reading. Orinda Library, 26 Orinda Way, Orinda. (925)254-1358

Sun, July 6 - Beachcomber Singles’casual dinner & entertainment evening 6:30 p.m. to 9pm at Lafayette Orinda Presbyterian Church, 49 Knox Drive, Lafayette. After dinner there will be a speaker on Laughter and Health followed by dancing at WPLJ's in Walnut Creek at 9:30: No host event. Come and enjoy the music and let's dance, dance, dance. Call Jerry 510-799-2207. $7 cost
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In honor of the first International Happiness Day, the Diablo Valley Happiness Club will hold a viewing of a video by Happiness Clubs founder, Lionel Ketchian, from 10:30 AM to Noon, Thursday, July 10th, 2008, at the Lafayette Senior Center, 500 Saint Mary’s Road, in Lafayette. This event is FREE and everyone is invited regardless of age or residence. A discussion of happiness will follow the video. For more information, call Mei Sun Li, Lafayette Senior Center Director, at: 925-284-5050
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A One-Day Writing Retreat for Women, presented by Mary Tuchscherer, M.A. in Lafayette on July 12 from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Ms. Tuchscherer is trained in the Amherst Writers and Artists Method and teaches at John F. Kennedy University as an Adjunct Faculty member. She will be facilitating a workshop in self-expression writing. The group will write in response to prompts and exchange positive feedback. Class is limited to eight people, call 925-335-9244 or e-mail mary@voiceflamewriters.com for more information.
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Seniors enjoy afternoon Tea Dancing and light refreshments every Wednesday from 12:30 – 3:00pm in the spacious Live Oak room. Come for the swell music and good company even if you prefer not to dance. $2 fee covers refreshments. LCC Live Oak Room located at 500 Saint Mary’s Rd, Lafayette. 925-284-5050
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World Affairs Book Group will discuss "The United States of Europe: The New Superpower and the End of American Supremacy" by T.R. Reid, on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 at 3:00 p.m. at Orinda Books, 276 Village Square. New members are always welcome. For information, call Daisy Daymond, Group Leader, at 935-1565.
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Computer Maintenance 101 with Ed Zeidan, Nerd4Rent on Thurs.7/17 10:30 - Noon. This popular and informative class will cover the basics of computer ownership for seniors. We’ll describe what steps to take to keep your computer running well, when to replace vs. repair, and give recommendations on what features to look for in your next computer. Call early, this event is always well attended. Lafayette Community Center, 500 Saint Mary’s Rd, Lafayette. 925-284-5050
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Lecture on Oscar Wilde’s “An Ideal Husband” Wed July 23 11:00 – 12:30 that precedes a Group Trip to the CalShakes Theater Production in Orinda. “If we men married the women we deserved…we should have a very bad time of it.” No charge for the lecture. Attendees are encouraged (but not required) to attend the afternoon matinee production the following Saturday for which there is a group discount charge of $30.00 per admission. Lafayette Community Center, 500 Saint Mary’s Rd, Lafayette. 925-284-5050

Save Mount Diablo will host its seventh annual “Moonlight on the Mountain” on Saturday, September 13, 2008. This special, one-of-a-kind event for 500 guests includes drinks and hors d’oeuvres, silent and live auction, elegant sit-down dinner, and live music. “Moonlight on the Mountain” takes place outdoors on a flat plateau next to the dramatic rock formations of China Wall, with a spectacular view of undeveloped rolling hills and the summit of Mount Diablo—all under the light of the rising moon. www.savemountdiablo.org