Spotlight: Spokane doctor named to state arts commission
Spokane physician Bassem Bejjani has been appointed to the Washington State Arts Commission. He joins two other Eastern Washington appointees on the 23-member panel – Mark Anderson of Walla Walla Foundry and Amanda Jackson of the Methow Arts Alliance in Twisp – named by Gov. Chris Gregoire last week.
Commissioners who are appointed by the governor help advise the governor and legislators on arts issues in Washington. By law 19 members are appointed by the governor; four are members of the Legislature.
Also serving on the commission from the East Side are Brenda Nienhouse, executive director of the Spokane Symphony, Noël Moxley of the Yakima City Arts Commission, state Rep. Larry Haler of Richland, Yakima education administrator Jane Gutting and John Fraire, vice president for student affairs and enrollment at Washington State University in Pullman.
Bejjani, a pediatrician and geneticist, recently retired from Signature Genomics, the Spokane genetics laboratory he co-founded in 2003.
Patsy 2.0
One Patsy Cline production is off and running, while another is waiting in the wings.
“Always … Patsy Cline” opened at Interplayers Theatre on Thursday. Meanwhile, Spokane Civic Theatre has announced the cast of “A Closer Walk With Patsy Cline,” and extended its run.
Alyssa Day, a 15-year Civic veteran, will star as the ill-fated country legend. Scott Miller, who was the sheriff in “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,” will play Little Big Man/Comic.
The play’s run from Oct. 18 to Nov. 18 will be extended to include two more performances, Nov. 23 and 24 – the days immediately following Thanksgiving.
For tickets, call the box office at (509) 325-2507 or visit www.spokanecivictheatre.com.>
Coeur d’Alene artist Kyle Paliotto will hold a two-day painting workshop, sponsored by the Coeur d’Alene Art Association. The classes will be held Thursday and again Sept. 27 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 501 E. Wallace Ave., in Coeur d’Alene. Cost is $45 for association members, $125 for nonmembers; membership is $25. The workshop is called “Giving Thought to Brushwork and Surface Texture,” and will help participants learn strategies for making successful paintings. For more information, call Stephanie at (208) 651-2785 or email svart@gmail.com. Spokane Children’s Theatre, a 66-year institution in Spokane, finally has a new and permanent home. When the season begins next month, SCT will be housed at 2727 N. Madelia St., which is near Gonzaga Prep. In previous years, SCT has staged productions at places like Spokane Civic Theatre and Spokane Falls Community College. The first show this season will be “The Adventures of Doctor Dolittle,” and it will open at 7 p.m. Oct. 5. A ribbon cutting ceremony will be at 6 p.m. For more information, visit www.spokane childrenstheatre.com. Guitarist Steve Kaufman, three-time winner of the National Flat Pick Guitar Championships, will perform and teach in Kettle Falls next weekend. A flat-picking guitar workshop will be Friday and Saturday at Kettle Falls Community Church, 170 E. Fifth St., in Kettle Falls. A concert will be at Woodland Productions, at Highway 395 and Gold Hill Road in Kettle Falls. For more information or Paliotto workshop
SCT finds home
Kaufman appearance