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Visual artists: Class of 2012

Seven artists are showing their work in an exhibition leading up to the start of their final year in the two-year Master of Fine Arts program in studio art.

"Fall Opener: An Exhibition of Visual Art by the �ٺ���Ƶ MFA Class of 2012" is set to open Friday (Sept. 9) in 124 Art Building. One of the students, Kyle Dunn, said the exhibition marks the closing of the exhibition space that formerly housed the Nelson Gallery (which moved last year to the old University Club, now called Nelson Hall).

The "Fall Opener" exhibitors comprise the entire class of 2012. "Our program is interdisciplinary and self-directed," Dunn said. "And though we do not adhere to particular specialties, our interests as a group are diverse and cover the spectrum."

Here are the exhibitors and their selections for "Fall Opener":

• Daniel Brickman — a "monumental and minimalist" wooden sculpture, a 50-foot-long beam stretching from a corner where wall meets floor at one of the gallery to a corner where wall meets ceiling on the opposite side of the room
• Kyle Dunn — a "colorful and whimsical" two- and three-dimensional installation
• Dani Galietti — a large-scale work on paper with projected video components
• Katie Nulicek — semi-abstract gestural landscape paintings
• Erika Romero -- life-size nude figure paintings on canvas
• Terry Peterson — a sculptural installation that incorporates found natural objects
• Jared Theis — a life-size ceramic environment with a stop-motion video component

A closing reception is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22, and the show is set to close on Saturday, Sept. 24. For more information, call the Department of Art, (530) 752-0105.

Mondavi's 10th season starts Sept. 21

The Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts' 10th season begins Wednesday, Sept. 21, with a concert by Return to Forever, the much-honored jazz-rock fusion ensemble: Chick Corea on keyboards, Stanley Clarke on bass and Lenny White on drums.

The ensemble, nearly 40 years old, is making another storied return to action — on a tour called Return to Forever IV, featuring French violinist Jean-Luc Ponty, veteran of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and Australian guitarist Frank Gambale, described by the Mondavi Center as "fiery-fingered."

The season-opening concert also features Zappa Plays Zappa, founded by Dweezil Zappa, son of the late Frank Zappa.

The concert is scheduled for 8 p.m. in Jackson Hall.

Tickets are available , or by visiting or calling the Mondavi Center box office, (530) 754-2787 or (866) 754-2787. Box office hours: noon-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and one hour before ticketed events.

Lovers, mechanicals and fairies on wheels!

The Davis Shakespeare Ensemble is rolling into its second season, literally, by putting wheels on A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

The comedy itself is staying put, in the arboretum, starting Thursday, Sept. 15. The play’s lovers, mechanicals and fairies, though, will be using all sorts of bicycles in and around the gazebo, and bicycle parts will serve as props and set decorations, and even musical instruments — all in recognition of Davis’ love affair with bikes.

The lovers, for their wild chase in the woods, will be on bikes. The mechanicals, who perform a play within the play, will comprise a rag-tag group of bike mechanics. And the fairies, traditionally represented as woodland sprites, will be more interested in stealing bike parts and playing music on rusted bike tires.

And look for Titania the fairy queen on her rowing bike — on which she can recline like, well, a queen!

The ensemble described this Midsummer as a fast-paced version with actors in multiple roles — embracing a tradition that dates from Shakespeare’s time. For example, one actor will play Helena (the lover), Moth (the fairy) and Snug (the mechanical).

“This creates interesting intersections between characters, and (it) challenges the actors to portray many different things throughout the production,” said Steph Hankinson, the ensemble’s managing director.

She noted that the production features professional actors and designers from all over the country, as well as members of the �ٺ���Ƶ community. Cast and crew affiliations include recipients of Bachelor of Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees from the UC system.

Hankinson credited �ٺ���Ƶ art student Rebecca Portney with the design of some of the main props and set pieces for A Midsummer Night’s Dream — using bike pieces and recycled metals salvaged from dumps, trash piles and industry sites. Portney recently presented a show in the arboretum, "From Landfill to Landscape," for which she fashioned landfill finds into giant metal flowers.

The ensemble itself is committed to “sustainable outdoor theatre,” with Hankinson noting that recycled materials are being used for all the props and decorations.

The ensemble staged its debut production, Romeo and Juliet, one year ago in the arboretum, and went on to stage three other productions in the arboretum, and now A Midsummer Night’s Dream, all in partnership with Friends of the �ٺ���Ƶ Arboretum.

AT A GLANCE

WHAT: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, presented by the Davis Shakespeare Ensemble

WHEN:

• Thursday-Sunday, Sept. 15-18 and 22-25, and Sept. 29-Oct. 2 — 8 p.m.
• Sunday, Sept. 18 and 25, and Oct. 2 — 2 p.m.

WHERE:

TICKETS: $15 adults, $10 students, $5 for ages 12 and under (the prices listed here are different than previously announced). The Sept. 15 performance is described as a preview, with all tickets selling for $5. You can buy tickets , or you can reserve them by calling (530) 802-0998.

MORE INFORMATION is available or by sending an e-mail to davis.shakespeare@gmail.com.