Spotlight: NPR’s Cokie Roberts sets Bing appearance
Cokie Roberts , the veteran political reporter for National Public Radio, has just been booked into the Bing Crosby Theater for a talk Oct. 1.
Spokane Public Radio is sponsoring her appearance. Roberts will talk about the issues roiling the other Washington, including healthcare, the debt, the economy and whatever new national crisis has reared its head by then.
Roberts comes by her political acumen honestly. She’s the daughter of two famous Congress members, her father Hale Boggs and her mother Lindy Boggs.
A lot of people rely on her for a level-headed, insider’s view of what’s happening in politics.
Roberts will speak at the Bing, 901 W. Sprague Ave., on Oct. 1 at 8 p.m. Tickets will be $40 (it’s a Spokane Public Radio fundraiser), on sale Aug. 19 through TicketsWest outlets (800-325-SEAT or www.ticketswest.com).
She’ll also be signing her new book, co-authored with husband Steven Roberts, “Our Haggadah: Uniting Traditions for Interfaith Families.”
‘The Ward’ on DVD
“The Ward,” the suspense thriller filmed in Medical Lake by horror legend John Carpenter, is coming out on DVD and Blu-ray on Tuesday.
It stars Amber Heard and features a few local actors you may recognize in bit parts, including Patrick Treadway and Kent Kimball.
This movie was screened at several film festivals and got some good national attention from the New York Times. However, it received lukewarm reviews and never had a true theatrical release.
R-rated musical
“Sperm! The Musical” is on the way to the Panida Theater in Sandpoint.
No, this is not a joke. It’s an original musical comedy set in that most, umm, romantic of settings: a sperm bank.
It’s about “sperm radiation therapy, and killer mutant sperm monsters” – or, to put it more directly, about a couple named Willy and Delouise Johnson who are having trouble conceiving.
It was written by Sandpoint playwright Ben Olson, with music by Brian Hibbard, and is directed by Andrew Sorg.
If it’s anywhere near as entertaining as Olson’s press release, this show could be a hoot. One example: “Brian’s songs are so catchy, you’d hum them all day if they weren’t written about sperm.”
The show will run Friday, Saturday and Aug. 26-27 at 7:30 p.m. at the Panida. Doors open at 7 p.m.
Tickets will be $15 at the door, but a couple of bucks cheaper if bought in advance at Eichardt’s, Eve’s Leaves, Main Street Music, Pack River Potions and other retail spots around Sandpoint.
Next summer’s shows
The Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre already has three of the four musicals nailed down for its 2012 summer season:
• “Ragtime,” the fine 1996 musical about life at the turn of the previous century.
• “Ring of Fire” a Johnny Cash musical revue.
• “Spamalot,” the hysterical Monty Python medieval spoof.
No dates have yet been set. The fourth musical is still up in the air.
The theater is currently running its last show of this season, “The Sound of Music.”
The Cabaret Cruise
In other CdA Summer Theatre news, the Cabaret Cruise steams out of port on Wednesday evening at the Third Street Boardwalk Marina in Coeur d’Alene.
Cast members will sing their favorite songs while the Mish-an-Nock cruises Lake Coeur d’Alene.
The cost is $25, with tickets available by calling (208) 769-7780. This is a fundraiser for the theater.
Get there by 6:30 p.m. for boarding.
Comstock concert returns
Just a reminder: The Spokane Symphony’s free Labor Day concert at Comstock Park will return after a one-year hiatus.
This beloved Spokane tradition will resume thanks to a grant from Sterling Savings Bank. It will begin at 6 p.m. on Sept. 5. The program is yet to be announced.
Labor Day just didn’t seem right without it last year.
The symphony’s other Labor Day weekend tradition is also on schedule: The Friends of Pavillion Park Concert at Liberty Lake on Sept. 3, 6 p.m.
Pro casting tips
Casting director Lana Veenker (“Twilight,” NBC’s upcoming “Grimm”) will give a talk next Saturday in Spokane on the business of being a working actor, the art of casting and the art of getting cast.
Veenker, who works out of Portland, will be in town doing intensive workshops, organized by local casting director and actress Nike Imoru.
Her Saturday evening “talkback and reception” event, at 7:30 p.m. at Interplayers Professional Theatre, 174 S. Howard St., is open to the public.
Tickets will be $15 at the door. Registration is not required.
For information on Veenker’s local workshops, visit www.actwithinspiration.com.
Rockin’ B Bluegrass
The Rockin’ B Ranch is still going strong (in its final season), and on Tuesday it will resonate with the sounds of banjo and fiddle.
It’s the Rockin’ Bluegrass Concert, with regional bands Big Red Barn and The Afterthoughts. Tickets are $7.50 for adults, available only at the door, and free for kids 10 and younger.
The concert starts Tuesday at 7 p.m., but the doors open at 6 p.m. and food and beverage will be available for purchase if you want to make an evening of it.
The Rockin’ B Ranch is 100 yards south of Interstate 90’s exit 299, on the Washington-Idaho line.
Shakespeare on screen
A reminder: The London Globe Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s “Henry IV Part 2” will hit the Northtown 12 Cinemas, 4750 N. Division St., on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
This is part of the Shakespeare’s Globe London Cinema Series, in which Globe productions are filmed and shown in special big-screen events.
Tickets are $15, available at the theater box office or through www.fathomevents.com.