The Buzz: Air Force Band to stage Holiday show, locals get ‘Twisted’ for Christmas

Air Force Band to play holiday concert in Petaluma: The 40-piece ensemble known as The United States Air Force Band of the Golden West will be presenting a holiday-themed show at the Petaluma Veterans Building (1094 S. Petaluma Blvd.) on Thursday, Dec. 6. Under the leadership of Commander Captain Joseph Hansen, the acclaimed band is based at Travis Air Force Base, and is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. With a mission to connect, through music, with the American public, to inspire excellence in others, and to honor and support veterans of the Air Force and all other service-members, the USAFBGW has built a huge statewide following. A rep from the Air Force tells THE BUZZ that its shows on the current anniversary tour have been routinely selling out.

The concert begins at 7 p.m., and is free to the public.

The band is one of several that the Air Force sponsors, from The Travis Brass, The Commanders Jazz Ensemble and one called Mobility (it’s a rock band) to The Golden West Winds, the Air Force Ceremonial Band and a corps of individual buglers. According to Steve Kemmerle of Petaluma’s American Legion Post 28, the group that will be entertaining Petaluma is the same ensemble that recently played the half-time at the 49ers Game.

Petaluma performers prepare to get ‘Twisted’: Homegrown singer-performers Katie Kelley and Lucy London will be joining Argus-Courier Community Editor David Templeton for “Twisted Christmas Live!” an off-the-wall benefit for Spreckels Theatre Company in Rohnert Park. The show features San Francisco comedian Will Durst, Sonoma-based Reed Martin (of the Reduced Shakespeare Company), voice actor Debi Durst, America’s Got Talent comic Oliver Graves, Transcendence Theatre Company’s Brad Surosky, Broadway actor Charles Siebert (“Trapper John,” M.D.”), and Classical KDFC radio host Robin Pressman, reading outrageous holiday stories, live on stage.

Kelley and London will be contributing to the show as singing performers, each presenting a satirical take on a different song from Disney’s “Frozen.” In London’s song, accompanied by pianist Nancy Hayashibara, the lyrics of the song “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” will be changed to “Will You Help Me Hide a Body?” And in Kelley’s appearance (for which she’ll be dressed up as the “Frozen” character Elsa), she’ll sing a version of the song “Let it Go,” in which all of the lyrics have been fed into a Google translation program, translated into several languages, and then back into English.

Templeton will be hosting the show as M.C. “Twisted Christmas Live!” takes place Sunday, Dec. 9, at Spreckels Performing Arts Center, 5409 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park. Information can be found at SpreckelsOnline.com.

Searching for “Shakespeare’s Shorts”: Performers are being sought to deliver brief scenes from the works of William Shakespeare, as part of next April’s “Night of Shakespeare Shorts,” at the Phoenix Theater. A joint project of Petaluma Shakespeare Company and the local Bard-themed publishing company Shakesprints, the competitive show (to be held April 6, at 7 p.m.) will alternate between selected scenes, to be judged by a panel of Shakespeare-savvy experts, and live music performed by local musicians. The judges will include representatives of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Utah Shakespeare Festival, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, and others. The scene chosen as the best will receive a $500 prize, with $100 awards going to Best Dramatic Scene and Best Comedic Scene? Interested participants can apply online at PetalumaShakespeare.org. Applications must be received by Feb. 15, 2019. All scenes should take between 8 and 10 minutes to perform. Think of it as Petaluma’s Got Shakespeare!