Townsend Opera to ‘Celebrate Our Town’ in Modesto

Townsend Opera will present a community exhibit celebrating Modesto history to coincide with its upcoming production of “Our Town.”

“Celebrate Our Town” will feature historical photographs, displays and oral presentations about the city’s development. The exhibit will be on display in the lobby of Gallo Center for the Arts on Jan. 21-22, the dates the Modesto opera company will produce “Our Town” at the performing arts venue.

Townsend General Director Matthew Buckman said community members will have opportunities to contribute to the exhibit through web forums, photography and a storytelling contest.

Buckman said the exhibit will be part of a multiyear initiative by Townsend to tell community and regional stories. An exhibit on migrant workers is planned for the company’s production “Of Mice and Men” in April.

Those interested in helping can contact Buckman at 209-523-6426.

Sourdough’s ‘Wild & Woolly Revue’

Get your new year off to a wild and wooly start with Sourdough Slim in January.

The popular Western performer brings his “Wild & Woolly Revue” to the region. The show will feature Sourdough Slim & the Saddle Pals as well as popular Gold Country performers Faux Renwah and Robert Armstrong, songs, stories and good humor. The Saddle Pals include Cactus Bob, Prairie Flower and Michael P. Kennedy.

Shows are 7:30 p.m. Jan. 7 at the Black Bart Theatre in Murphys and 7:30 p.m. Jan. 21 at Westside Theatre in Newman. For more information, visit www.sourdoughslim.com.

James Patterson at UOP

Best-selling crime novelist James Patterson will be the commencement speaker at the University of the Pacific in Stockton this May.

The author behind the popular Alex Cross series and others will give an address at the graduation ceremony at the Stockton private college. The class of 2017 includes four graduates who received scholarships from Patterson and his wife, Susan, through their Patterson Family Foundation. The foundation has awarded more than $7 million to students teachers at colleges across the country. UOP was the first institution on the West Coast to have student teachers in its scholarship program.

This story was originally published December 21, 2016 at 9:30 AM with the headline "Townsend Opera to ‘Celebrate Our Town’ in Modesto."