Carruthers on road to recovery
Arnie Carruthers, 78, one of Spokane’s top jazz pianists, was badly injured in a one-car accident in Montana on Oct. 8, yet we have some good news to report: He is recovering at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and was reported to be in stable condition and rapidly improving on Thursday.
“He still has a lot of healing to do, but he’s doing OK,” said his daughter, Charlotte Carruthers.
He was returning from a gig in Kalispell when the accident occurred. His back was broken in three places. His injuries were severe enough that he was airlifted to Harborview – 400-plus miles away.
Yet he suffered no neurological damage, which means chances are good he will recover sufficiently to do what he does best – play the piano.
Sax man Sorger
Meanwhile, we should note that Spokane lost a top jazzman – saxophone player Marc Sorger – in an auto accident on Oct. 7 about 20 miles north of Spokane on Highway 291.
Sorger, 56, was a staple of Spokane’s jazz scene. He was perhaps best known as half of the duo Safe Sax in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and for being a member of the Spirits of Rhythm, fronted by Casey MacGill. The band made a national splash during the Swing Revival of the mid- to late-‘90s.
Several of the band’s songs ended up in the Broadway musical, “Swing!” Sorger wasn’t only a player in the band – he produced the band’s best-known CD, “Jump.”
During his long career, he worked with stars including John Denver, Bruce Hornsby and Linda Ronstadt. The local music community will miss him immensely.
Charles Rowe’s farewell
Charles Rowe of KREM-2 may be the best known news anchor – and maybe the best known face – in Spokane.
So it will be the end of an era when he retires on Nov. 30. He announced his decision earlier this month.
Rowe arrived at KREM in fall of 1987 and sat in the anchor chair for the next 20 years. Before he came to Spokane, he had experience in some of the biggest markets in country, including a stint in Chicago and another from 1973 to 1980 as an anchor at KTTV in Los Angeles.
While in L.A., he appeared in more than 20 TV shows and movies in the role of “news anchor,” since he was one of the few anchors in town allowed to do so.
The Rowe era will last six more weeks on KREM-2 news at 5 and 10 p.m. (the latter airing on sister station KSKN-22).
‘Les Miz’ at CdA Summer Theatre
The Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre announced its 2008 season, and it includes a big show. Actually, the theater’s biggest show ever.
This professional summer stock theater will tackle “Les Miserables,” a show that is so complex that it is rarely produced outside of national tours. Artistic director Roger Welch said the CdA Summer Theatre was one of only five theaters nationwide “handpicked by the producers” to get the rights to the show.
And that’s not all. Here’s the entire season:
“ “All Shook Up,” the Elvis musical, June 7-21.
“ “La Cage aux Folles,” the outrageous drag musical, June 27 through July 12.
“ “Once Upon a Mattress,” the Mary Rodgers fairy tale musical, July 19 through Aug. 2.
“ “Les Miserables,” the musical version of Victor Hugo’s classic, Aug. 9-23.
Call (800) 4-CDATIX or go to www.cdasummertheatre.org for subscription information.
‘Evening at La Cage’
Speaking of “La Cage,” the female-impersonator show, “An Evening at La Cage” makes a return appearance to Northern Quest Casino, Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 at 7:30 p.m., and Nov. 2 and 3 at 8:30 p.m.
This touring show, out of the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, features men portraying (and lip-synching to) such performers as Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, Tina Turner, Cher and Dolly Parton. Tickets are $35, available through the Northern Quest box office or (509) 340-6700 or TicketsWest outlets (509-325-SEAT, 800-325-SEAT, www.ticketswest.com).
Several swingin’ affairs
Swing is the theme of two upcoming shows:
“ “In the Mood,” a national touring show reviving the music and choreography of the 1940s, on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 7:30 p.m. at the Bing Crosby Theater, tickets available through TicketsWest outlets. This is a fundraiser for CenterStage, although it is not at CenterStage.
“ “Think SWING!” a festival featuring eight jazz and blues bands, comes to CenterStage, 1017 W. First Ave., Nov. 8 through 10. Tickets are available through TicketsWest outlets. This festival was a big success last year with New Orleans musicians; this year, it will feature local and regional acts, including Stolen Sweets and Casey MacGill’s Blue 4 Trio. Go to www.thinkswingspokane.com for more information.
Ensemble Amarcord
One of Europe’s top a cappella quintets, Ensemble Amarcord from Germany, will perform at the University of Idaho Auditorium in Moscow, Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
The quintet, all of whom were formerly in the St. Thomas Boy’s Choir in Leipzig, will perform a repertoire spanning six centuries of vocal music.
Tickets are $18, $15 for seniors and $10 for students, available through www.auditoriumchambermusic.org, at BookPeople in Moscow, or at the door.
GU coffee house theater
Here’s a creative way to extend a theatrical run to a new audience: Gonzaga University’s summer play, “This Is Our Youth,” by Kenneth Lonergan, will be revived for two weekends at the Empyrean Coffee House, 154 S. Madison St.
This 1996 Drama Desk nominee is about disaffected youth, drugs and social alienation. Director Brian Russo said the move downtown is away to “reach out to a young audience with a contemporary play.”
Showtimes will be at 8 p.m. on Nov. 1, 2, 3, 8 and 9, and 4 p.m. on Nov. 4 and 11. Tickets will be $7 at the door, cash only.
Fall Chamber Soiree
The first concert in the Spokane Symphony’s Chamber Soiree series, Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., is dangerously close to selling out.
Only 12 tickets were left as of late last week, and those were only for the Wednesday concert and only in the gallery. The table seating is all sold out.
Call (509) 624-1200 or TicketsWest outlets if you want to grab one of the few remaining spots. Beethoven, Stravinsky and Ryden are on the program. This series, in the Marie Antoinette Ballroom of Davenport Hotel, has clearly proven to be a hit.
Jack Phillips to be honored
Here’s an extra reason to attend the in-concert version of “Into the Woods” at the Spokane Civic Theatre tonight at 7:30 p.m.: Former Civic executive director Jack Phillips will be honored, along with his wife, Debbie Phillips, in a reception in the lobby following the show. They will be in attendance to see their daughter Katie-Sarah Phillips sing in this Sondheim classic. Phillips is now the head of the Theatre of Western Springs in the Chicago area. Tickets are $25 at the door, 1020 N. Howard St.
Red Shoe Event
The Fourth Annual Red Shoe Event, an annual art auction sponsored by the Spokane Advertising Federation, is coming up on Nov. 7 from 5:30 to 10 p.m. at the Spokane Convention Center.
This has become a popular art event, with works from regional artists and unfinished furniture embellished by design professionals on the auction block.
Tickets will be $30 at the door, the price includes cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. Proceeds go to the Toni M. Robideaux Scholarship Fund, which helps local college students study the arts.
CREATE site
CREATE, the Newport, Wash., arts organization, has unveiled its new Web site at www.createarts.org.
Check it out to learn about the surprisingly rich performing and visual arts scene in Newport and vicinity.