Sacramento County Art, Culture & Media Digest

Over the Labor Day weekend, festivals throughout Sacramento provided incentives to encourage vaccinations among the city's vulnerable populations. Rapid testing was also onsite.

Ginger Elizabeth Hahn, a popular Sacramento chocolatier, has released her first cookbook after years of requests for one. The book is for sale at both Ginger Elizabeth locations as well as her online store.

Broadway Sacramento welcomes a full roster of musicals, with “Hamilton” leading the way. It's a victory for the organization, which has canceled two seasons due to COVID-19.

Mick Martin, a long-established blues player in the Sacramento region, continues to not only entertain but also inspire.

Lonnie Wong, who has provided the news to Sacramento residents for more than four decades, has announced his retirement. Wong started on a student-run radio show at UC Davis and spent the majority of his career at Fox 40.

Dana Maeshia, owner of the south Sacramento bookstore All Things Literacy, passed away Aug. 30 from COVID-related illness, close sources say. Family and friends shared fond memories but most thanked her for her dedication to serving Sacramento’s Black communities.

Foodieland, a pop up Asian street fair food event, is coming to Cal Expo over Labor Day weekend. Tickets are only $5 and admission times are staggered.

A concert will be held Aug. 27 at Zittel Family Amphitheatre to raise funds to benefit Caldor Fire victims.

A Sacramento artist has created curb address art to add some flair to local residences—as well as to benefit Habitat for Humanity with each booking.

The Capital Airshow is flying back to Sacramento Sept. 24-26 and ambassadors are needed to keep things running smoothly.

Deborah Pittman first came to Sacramento in the 1980s to play clarinet in the symphony. Today, she remains in the capital region and has expanded her artistic expression into ceramics, filmmaking, and stage productions.

Sacramento soul/R&B artist Basi Vibe releases new music and a video featuring some recognizable locations in Sacramento, namely midtown and the Flamingo House.

Valley Sculpture Artists honored two winners: Phill Evans, the 2020 Herberholz Award for Sculpture recipient, and also the 2021 recipient, Delbert Swanson.

Muralist Mary Sand, a Sacramento native, is behind the new mural gracing Gunther’s Ice Cream. It features 1940s and 1950s nostalgia, paying homage to this long-standing ice cream shop.

After over a year's pause due to the pandemic, Theatre in the Heights, Citrus Heights' only live theater, is reopening its doors with performances of “Much Ado About Nothing.”

Even when the pandemic was shutting down Sacramento's art scene, Mercy Hawkins pushed her work to the next level and fought for it to be seen.

In a time when artists are already barely getting by, some are unfortunately being conned into cryptocurrency scams cropping up around town.

Organizations in Natomas have taken to the sidewalks to chalk out promotions for the annual "Chalk It Up" art festival on Labor Day weekend.

A retired arts educator has partnered with his granddaughter to produce a COVID-inspired art collection. Catch it at the Elk Grove Fine Arts Center through August 26.

The Elk Grove Youth Symphony Orchestra, a new orchestra being formed by the Sacramento Performing Arts Conservatory, is holding auditions for young musicians.

Carmichael Park is hosting two more Saturday night outdoor concerts featuring cover bands under the park's sound shell. Dancing is encouraged.

Justin Barker was only 13 years old when he set out to expose the inhumane conditions of some wild animals living in captivity in the Sacramento region. Now, his memoir “Bear Boy” includes a foreword by Dr. Jane Goodall.

Despite coronavirus uncertainties, film and television production continues to thrive and expand in the Sacramento region, ranging in locations from the Fab 40s to the peaks of Tahoe.

A new Art at City Hall show titled “Abstraction” recently opened—the first since the pandemic—that features 87 pieces by 41 different artists. All work, including the winning entries, will be on display through Aug. 22.

Having a tough week? Year? Life? Smash Sacramento invites guests to destroy plates, VHS tapes, computer towers, windshields and more in a safe environment. Smash packages range from $20 to $40 and have proven to be a great stress reliever in a time where many need just that.

A new mixed-voice a cappella chorus has recently formed in Fair Oaks. The group is called Stay Tuned and features singers performing jazz, pop, and other a cappella music. The chorus currently has approximately 25 members and is ready to welcome more.

The 15th edition of the airshow will feature the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, as well as the planned headliners from the scrapped 2020 show: the Royal Canadian Air Force Snowbirds. Taking place at Mather Airport, it will run three days instead of two, beginning with a new drive-in show.

The Sacramento Bee has launched La Abeja, a weekly newsletter that will focus ong Latino issues in California, “written for Latinos by Latinos.”

Fair Oaks resident Tiffany Madrid has resumed her live acoustic open-mic music sessions, this time bringing the twice-monthly event to Stage 76 Kitchen & Bar at 7600 Fair Oaks Blvd. in Carmichael.

The city of Rancho Cordova, in partnership with Sacramento Municipal Utility District, commissioned regional artists to design artwork to wrap 30 utility and traffic signal boxes throughout the community.

Crystel Patterson, a mother of two, has created a children’s book series that “explores the culture, experience, and dreams of Black people to expand the imagination of children.”

The Crocker Art Museum, which reopened to the public on April 8 with timed ticket entries, mask requirements, and other precautions, looks forward to jumpstarting its summer art camps for kids and highlighting new exhibitions.