LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Lake County Symphony Chamber Concert is scheduled for one performance only at 2 p.m., Aug. 18, at the Soper Reese Theatre in Lakeport.

There will be no discounted rehearsal performance for this concert.

LCSA Musical Director John Parkinson will conduct several pieces by featured composers Jean-Joseph Mouret, George Frederick Handel, Luigi Boccherini, William Boyce and Antonio Vivaldi.

Starting off the concert is French composer Jean-Joseph Mouret’s “Rondeau” from his “Symphonie de Fanfares.”

Mouret (1682-1738) was one of the leading figures of Baroque music in France during his lifetime. These days most of his works are rarely performed, but many will recognize this piece as the signature tune of PBS’ Masterpiece Theatre.

Next is “Entrance of the Queen of Sheba” from the “Solomon” oratorio by George Frederick Handel (1685-1759). It contains a short and lively passage for two oboes and strings in Act Three, known as the “Arrival of the Queen of Sheba.” This section was played at the 2012 London Olympics and became famous outside of the complete work.

Italian composer/cellist of the Classical Era, Luigi Boccherini (1743-1805) is featured next with his “Overture in D Major.”

Boccherini wrote a large amount of chamber music, including over 100 string quintets which featured cellos along with violins and violas and several guitar quintets. Boccherini’s orchestral music includes about 30 symphonies and 12 virtuoso cello concertos.

The next piece is “Symphony No. 5” by English composer and organist, William Boyce (1711-1789). Boyce (like Beethoven) became deaf during his life but continued to compose music.

Music by Vivaldi (1678-1741) comes next. “Concerto for Two Trumpets” is the only known Vivaldi concerto for trumpet and requires players with a high level of proficiency.

It shouldn’t be a problem for Gary Miller and John Smiraglia, two music pros who have about 100 years of experience between them. The pair can also handle the more difficult “piccolo” trumpet featured in this piece. The piccolo trumpet is about half the size of a regular trumpet and has a pitch that is an octave higher. “It also has four valves instead of the usual three,” adds Smiraglia, “so it’s definitely more complicated.”

Next in the program is Handel’s “Water Music” (Concerto Grosso No. 25) a collection of orchestral movements, often published as three suites.

It premiered on July 17, 1717, in response to King George I’s request for a concert on the River Thames. Handel's Water Music was performed more than three times on the River Thames for King George I and his guests.

It is said the compositions spurred reconciliation between Handel and the king, supposedly annoyed by the composer's abandonment of his Hanover post several years earlier.

There is no charge, as usual, for those age 18 and under to attend this concert. All other seats are $15 — LCSA member discounts will not apply.

Tickets may be purchased online at the Soper Reese website and will also be available 30 minutes prior to the performance at the Soper Reese box office at 275 S. Main St. in Lakeport.

This concert is part of the Symphony Season Ticket Package. However, please note this is an open seating event.

Debra Fredrickson writes for the Lake County Symphony Association.

‘DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE’ RATED R

“Make Superhero Movies Fun Again” could be the mantra for “Deadpool & Wolverine,” an R-rated action comedy that leans heavily into the rivalry of two superheroes and their unabashed proclivity for bloody fights and hurling profanity-laced insults.

The long-awaited return of a “Deadpool” film is a saving grace for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which has received disappointing box office numbers for recent films, including the overly hyped “Captain Marvel.”

But just when it feels like the superhero genre has been exhausted, along comes Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman to deliver a wallop of crowd-pleasing excitement filled with giddy, humorous irreverence and blockbuster action.

Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds), wearing a really bad toupee, has hung up his Deadpool costume to sell used cars. His trademark red ensemble has been retired since he failed to be accepted into the Avengers.

Wade’s ordinary civilian life takes a wild turn when the Time Variance Authority, under the leadership of the officious Mr. Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen), sucks him into a mission. Deadpool’s universe faces extinction, so it is time to suit up again.

An existential threat looms over Deadpool and his friends, including estranged girlfriend Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) and his unsighted roommate Blind Al (Leslie Uggams). This is all the more reason for Deadpool to trade hawking autos to packing his swords once more.

There is not much point in trying to explain the apocalyptic threat that kills timelines. Just know that a place known as The Void, set in a barren landscape reminiscent of “Mad Max,” is run by the villainous Cassandra (Emma Corwin), who looks like an emaciated model minus the hair.

While Wade may not be that thrilled to enter the superhero arena, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), deep-sixed in “Logan,” is resurrected, so to speak, and still much in need of anger management.

Seemingly endless fight scenes between Deadpool and Wolverine are obligatory until they finally team up against a common adversary. A priceless line is when Deadpool says that Disney is going to make Wolverine do this role until he’s ninety.

At least for now, Deadpool and Wolverine are such a great combo that bringing them back for another superhero adventure would be more welcome than retooling other Marvel films.

At times, the plot gets a little messy or a bit convoluted, but the comical mischief comes so fast and furious that it would not be surprising that one would want a repeat viewing just to soak in all the wackiness.

“Deadpool & Wolverine” is the best blockbuster movie to come along in a long time. The wisecracks and comic banter are supreme, thanks to great delivery. The action sequences pack a real punch.

The chemistry between Reynolds and Jackman is first-rate, as they know exactly what works best for their respective roles. On top of that, Reynolds is brilliant for breaking the fourth wall when his quips are directed at the audience.

Keep in mind the excess of profanity, so this is not a family film. That said, “Deadpool & Wolverine” it’s awfully damn funny even if the dialogue is not for everyone. Considering Reynolds’ shtick in the two previous franchise installments, all that can be said is what did you expect?

US OPEN TENNIS TOURNAMENT FAN WEEK

While the actual tennis matches for the US Open Tennis Tournament get underway on Monday, Aug. 26, fans get to enjoy a host of free admission events on the grounds beginning the week before.

Beginning on Monday, Aug. 19, both the main venue of Arthur Ashe Stadium and the Grandstand offer the opportunity to watch favorite players and biggest stars practice throughout Fan Week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. as they gear up for the Main Draw.

On Courts 4 to 17, the US Open Qualifying Tournament will feature 128 men and 128 women competing for a spot in the Main Draw. Witness top tennis players in the world battle for a place in the Main Draw.

Wednesday night, Aug. 21, a ticket will be required for the “Stars of the Open” at Arthur Ashe Stadium. This tennis exhibition will feature an all-star lineup of top players and US Open legends.

The event is expected to showcase the talents of Novak Djokovic, John McEnroe, Carlos Alcaraz, Andre Agassi, Venus Williams, Gabriela Wozniacki, Andy Roddick, Frances Tiafoe, and more. Participants are subject to change.

All day and every day, you can enjoy the variety of delicious food offerings from numerous restaurants that surpass anything you would ever find at traditional sports venues like football stadiums, baseball parks and hockey arenas.

The US Open American Express Fan Experience offers an array of thrilling activities for fans of all ages. Be sure to visit sponsor booths on the grounds for fun games and giveaways.

There is so much more to learn about what to expect during Fan Week that it would be best to search for “US Open Tennis Fan Week 2024” on your browser, and then look into the Fan Access Pass Experience.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

‘TWISTERS’ RATED PG-13

The premise of a disaster movie with an adrenaline-pumping thrill ride of storm chasers bravely venturing into the eye of a tornado turned 1996’s “Twister” into a spectacle of special effects.

“Twisters” basically follows the same path across the Oklahoma plains. In the original, Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt are two storm chasers on the brink of divorce. Now we get Daisy Edgar-Jones’ Kate Carter, a former chaser, and Glen Powell’s reckless adventure-seeking cowboy Tyler Owens.

Her storm-chasing days behind her after a devastating encounter with a tornado during her college years resulted in the death of friends, Kate now she studies storm patterns on computer screens in the safe confines of a weather service in New York City.

Kate is lured back to Oklahoma by her surviving friend Javi (Anthony Ramos) to test a groundbreaking new portable radar system that can better study how tornadoes form and allow for the release of polymers into the funnel’s eye to diminish its power.

Kate must also overcome her reluctance to return home where her mother Cathy (Maura Tierney) still lives on the family’s rural homestead, a place that holds painful memories of lost loved ones.

While Javi’s enterprise is funded in part by a dubious real estate developer with his eye of snatching up distressed properties, he’s not alone in the business of chasing storms for fame or profit.

Tyler Owens, a social media star who calls himself a “tornado wrangler,” has a huge following if for no better reason that he’s a charming hustler and reckless thrill-seeker who once got his kicks as a rodeo cowboy.

As the story moves along, it seems hardly a day goes by before another tornado touches down to disrupt a street festival, a rodeo, an oil refinery, and an entire town, with explosive results and widespread destruction.

The storm chasers are evidently fearless in the face of extreme danger. Tyler’s ride-along nervous British journalist Ben (Harry Hadden-Paton) would appear to be the surrogate who represents the audience’s vicarious fear of the monster in the sky.

Above all, “Twisters” is truly a wondrous exploration of a wild subculture of exhilarating storm-chasing, populated by a mix of professional meteorologists, hardcore weather enthusiasts and thrill-seeking adventurers.

For most of us, living outside of America’s “tornado alley” means that a film like “Twisters,” as awesome it is with its rousing depiction of a tornado’s destructive power, is as close as we want to get to the terrifying action.



‘MY SPY: THE ETERNAL CITY’ RATED PG-13

Only four years ago, “My Spy” featured the burly Dave Bautista, former professional wrestler, in the role of hardened CIA operative JJ tangling with a precocious ten-year-old girl during his undercover role of surveilling her family.

Now along comes the sequel, “My Spy: The Eternal City,” streaming on Prime Video, and JJ remains at the mercy of the now-young teen Sophie (Chloe Coleman) during a trip of her high school peers to Italy.

But first, the film opens with a scene that emulates the prologue to either a “Mission Impossible” or “James Bond” film. Bodyguard to teen idol Ryan (Bill Barratt) on a private, JJ is attacked by a flight attendant before a bomb blows out a window and everyone falls from the sky.

Sophie comes to the rescue in a jetpack with parachute, or this just a dream? Whatever the case, now married to Sophie’s mom, JJ is a desk jockey at the CIA and filling in as the spouse who bakes scones, forsaking field duty, much to the chagrin of his agency boss David Kim (Ken Jeong).

In his stepdad role, JJ presses Sophie to keep up her physical training so that she can become an agent, which may have been her dream at one time, but she also claims wanting once to be Dora the Explorer.

As part of his domestication and hoping to bond with s disgruntled stepdaughter, JJ volunteers for chaperone duty for Sophie’s high school choir’s trip that includes performing for the Pope at the Vatican during a G7 summit.

Of course, there’s more to the trip than wrangling juveniles who want nothing more than to break loose from the nightly curfew. For one thing, Sophie is now more interested in boys, while oblivious to her friend Collin (Taeho K) being smitten.

Some bad guys, most notably the requisite villain Crane (Flula Borg), have a nefarious plan to blow up the Vatican with nuclear weapons unless the G7 nations pony up millions in ransom, which seems reminiscent of the nuclear extortion plot in the James Bond film “Thunderball.”

While serviceable in some regards as a weird amalgam of teen comedy, spy film and action thriller, the storyline is so scattershot that it doesn’t measure up to the same charm of the original.

One might get the idea that “My Spy: The Eternal City” might be trying a little too hard, amidst the car chases, fight scenes and more adult dialogue, to be more mature than what would be expected for the younger targeted audience of “My Spy.”

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

The NBC network is boasting that its fall schedule highlights fan-favorite franchise dramas, two nights of laughs, huge unscripted hits and the biggest and best live specials and holiday programming.

Three new series include “Brilliant Minds,” which is inspired by the life and work of world-famous author and physician Oliver Sacks, and stars Zachary Quinto as the larger-than-life neurologist and his team of interns exploring the last great frontier of the human mind.

“St. Denis Medical,” which stars Wendi McLendon-Covey, Allison Tolman and David Alan Grier, brings the laughs with a mockumentary about an underfunded, understaffed Oregon hospital where the dedicated doctors and nurses try their best to treat patients while maintaining their own sanity.

There’s much more to Reba McEntire than a country singer who was dubbed the “Queen of Country Music” for all the singles on the “Billboard” magazine chart of “Hot Country Songs.”

As an actress, Reba has appeared in numerous TV movies and series, most notably starring in the eponymous sitcom “Reba” as a single mom of three, navigating life in a Houston suburb for six seasons on network television.

Reba McEntire returns to comedy with multi-camera “Happy’s Place,” in which her character inherits her father’s bar and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.

Best-known for the “Law & Order” franchise, producer and writer Dick Wolf remains the King of the NBC schedule, with his series taking almost the entirety of two nights.

Thursday night is network television’s top-rated evening with the flagship “Law & Order” returning for its fiftieth (okay it just seems like that) season, followed by “Law & Order: SVU.” Concluding the night is the return of “Found.”

Dick Wolf’s “#OneChicago” franchise lineup takes up the entire Wednesday night, kicking off with “Chicago Med,” followed by “Chicago Fire” and concluding with “Chicago P.D.” All the first responders are covered, except there is no “Chicago Medical Examiner.”

Come to think of it, we should pitch the idea of a medical examiner or coroner series to Wolf. Jack Klugman had a nice run with “Quincy, M.E.,” for which he earned four Primetime Emmy Award nominations.

A series on the Los Angeles County Coroner could be good because of celebrity cases. After all, Thomas Noguchi was known as the “coroner to the stars” for high profile autopsies on Robert F. Kennedy, Natalie Wood, Sharon Tate, John Belushi, and Marilyn Monroe, among many others.

A new drama series set for midseason is “The Hunting Party,” a high-concept crime procedural about a small team of investigators who are assembled to track down criminals.

The targets for the sleuths are the most dangerous killers our country has ever seen, all of whom have just escaped from a top-secret prison that’s not supposed to exist. As of now, the only announced cast member is Melissa Roxburgh.

A new series also not on the fall schedule is “The Americas,” an epic 10-part tentpole event series that marks the first-time acclaimed actor, producer and writer Tom Hanks will narrate an unscripted entertainment series.

Featuring music by Oscar winner Hans Zimmer, “The Americas” will employ revolutionary filmmaking technology to showcase the wonders, secrets and fragilities of the Americas – Earth’s largest landmass and the only one to stretch between both poles, revealing untold wildlife stories.

“Destination X” merges fantasy with reality in a larger-than-life adventure competition series. Viewers will follow contestants as they embark on the road trip of a lifetime but have no idea of their location.

In order to win, the contestants must figure out their mystery locations. Once they’re on the blacked-out Destination X bus, the journey transforms into a real-life game board, with challenges designed to offer clever clues to their location, along with a few misdirects to keep them guessing.

At the end of each episode, the contestant who places an X on a map furthest from the actual location packs their bags. The first participant to reach Destination X will be crowned the winner. With high stakes and spectacular gameplay, the series will keep viewers engaged and playing along on all screens.

A holiday special arrives with “Defying Gravity: The Curtain Rises on Wicked,” which will be a celebration of the cinematic event of the year with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.

The international superstars lead an all-star cast in a journey through a dazzling new vision of Oz, created for Universal Pictures’ upcoming film “Wicked,” as they unveil some of the most spectacular sets ever created for film.

The “Wicked” stars are joined by Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey and more to host this thrilling behind-the-scenes special, sharing their personal memories, intimate video diaries and secrets of the making of “Wicked.”

For the second year in a row, NBC comes to the Opry, now featuring a new master of ceremonies with “Little Big Town’s Christmas at the Opry,” a festive two-hour music special from the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, with country music group Little Big Town.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. — This weekend the Middletown Art Center is offering multiple activities around fire resilience and artmaking.

It begins on Friday from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. with “Good Fire Good Earth,” a conversation with Scott Parady of Cobb Mountain Art and Ecology Project followed by a short talk with the Regenerative Farming Guild’s founder Kristen Callahan on land restoration post fire.

Activities continue on Saturday with a series of community artmaking workshops with “Reciprocity” and Raices Hermosas artists from 3 to 7:30 p.m.

All activities are free to the public and all ages are welcome. Children under 13 with supervision only please. The MAC appreciates an RSVP at MACLake.org for this weekend’s activities, but it is not required. Please note accessibility needs including language translation (for Friday), physical, or other with an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or text 707-355-4465.

During Good Fire Good Earth Scott Parady will discuss his collaboration with ceramics students from Sacramento State University. Together, they developed ceramic “protective bowls'' to shelter native plants and small animals during broadcast burns as part of regenerative land management.

Parady is the founder and director of the Cobb Mountain Art and Ecology Project which fosters learning and creativity through artist residencies and regenerative land stewardship of the 80 forested acres it is housed on.

Parady also completed a new, large-scale ceramic piece “Great Basin'' for “Reciprocity” which is installed at the EcoArts Sculpture Walk at Trailside park.

Kristen Callahan will discuss the regenerative practices she used to restore and improve the health of her 229 acre farm following Valley Fire devastation.

On Saturday at 3 p.m., Jaymie Hernandez de la Torre invites the public to co-create “identity seeds'' for her piece “Mestizaje Germination,” while Layna Joy Rivas welcomes the public to create colored wire sculptures representing birds and butterflies found in local ecosystems for her piece “Eclipsopy.” Both pieces are new installations for the "Reciprocity" EcoArts Sculpture Walk.

At 5 p.m. on Saturday Martin Zúñiga will lead a workshop to complete La Santa Rosa, currently outdoors at MAC, using repurposed water bottles. The artist will also discuss his approach to artmaking called “living art” which he believes is a necessity for creating balance in life.

Saturday’s events are all led by bilingual English/Spanish speaking artists. Free light snacks will be available and free raffles will take place every hour. Families and individuals are encouraged to join for as long as desired and contribute to any or all of the collaborative art pieces.

Most activities featured are part of the "Reciprocity" Project to revitalize the EcoArts Sculpture Walk. Artists have been creating new work focusing on environmental awareness, particularly fire resilience, and Social Justice issues. and have been working with community members to co-create components of their work. The new EcoArts Sculpture Walk "Reciprocity" opens on Aug. 10, from 6 to 8 p.m. Be sure to join the festivities!

"Reciprocity" is funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, through the Upstate California Creative Corps program with additional support from the County of Lake Public Services Department and District 1 Supervisor Moke Simon.

Raíces Hermosas (Zúñiga’s piece) is funded by the Specified General Fund for the Museum Grant Program under the California Cultural and Historical Endowment.

Middletown Art Center is a Lake County non-profit dedicated to engaging the public in art making, art education, and art appreciation. Through exhibitions, performances, workshops, and community events, the Art Center provides a platform for diverse voices and perspectives, striving to create an inclusive and accessible space for all.

To learn more and donate to support other MAC arts and cultural programs visit www.middletownartcenter.org or call 707-809-8118. The MAC is located at 21456 State Highway 175 in Middletown.

‘BEVERLY HILLS COP: AXEL F’ RATED R

Sequels run the risk of ruining what was once a good thing. You could say “Beverly Hills Cop III” did a disservice to the budding franchise, but it has taken thirty years to get back on track, and that’s the good news.

“Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” demonstrates that Eddie Murphy’s Axel Foley, a Detroit beat cop, has regained the spirit and enthusiasm of his witty, iconoclastic character that he showed us forty years ago.

That this film is streaming on Netflix and not running in theaters is a bit of a surprise. “Beverly Hills Cop IV,” to coin a reference for chronology, would be just right as a summer release at the multiplex.

The film opens with Axel Foley conning one of his colleagues into thinking they are at a Red Wings for the enjoyment of hockey, but there’s more to it than that when he drags Detective Moody (Kyle More) into breaking up a robbery.

What follows is typical Axel mischief as he hijacks a snowplow to chase the bad guys while mowing down an untold number of vehicles and property, which is his usual modus operandi that leads to trouble with the brass. Bucking for promotion, poor Moody is just collateral damage.

Axel’s former partner in the police department is Jeffrey Friedman (Paul Reiser), now the Deputy Chief, who is turning in his retirement papers and won’t be able to shield his colleague from scrutiny from higher-ups.

This matters little as Axel is called back to Beverly Hills when his estranged daughter, lawyer Jane (Taylour Paige), is nearly killed for getting too close to a police corruption case.

Most of the old gang is still around. Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) is now a private detective after a fallout with his former cantankerous partner John Taggart (John Ashton), who became the police chief.

New to the scene is Joseph Gordon-Leavitt’s detective Bobby Abbott, the ex-boyfriend of Axel’s daughter who becomes a natural ally. Kevin Bacon’s Captain Cade Grant is an entirely different story, whose questionable motives are readily apparent to any sentient being.

“Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” is a lively and cheerfully resilient entertainment that finds Eddie Murphy in fine comedic form. The only complaint would be the repetitious arguments that Jane brings to bear on the estrangement with her father, when we can guess how this will end.

‘LEONARDO DA VINCI’ SET FOR THE FALL ON PBS

The word of the day is “polymath” because it has been applied to 15th century renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci. Derived from Greek words, a polymath is basically a person of great and varied meaning.

For the first time, legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns explores a non-American subject in the two-part, four-hour “Leonardo da Vinci” scheduled to air in mid-November on PBS.

Set against the rich and dynamic backdrop of Renaissance Italy, at a time of skepticism and freethinking, regional war and religious upheaval, the film brings the artist’s achievements to life through his personal notebooks as well as primary and secondary accounts of his life.

“No single person can speak to our collective efforts to understand the world and ourselves,” said Ken Burns with his usual insight to a subject matter in the PBS news release.

“But Leonardo had a unique genius for inquiry, aided by his extraordinary skills as an artist and scientist, that helps us better understand the natural world that we are part of and to appreciate more fully what it means to be alive and human.”

The film weaves together an international group of experts, as well as others influenced by Leonardo who continue to find a connection between his artistic and scientific explorations and life today.

As the filmmaker and Leonardo admirer Guillermo del Toro says at the beginning of the film, “the modernity of Leonardo is that he understands that knowledge and imagination are intimately related.”

Born out of wedlock to a notary and a peasant woman, Leonardo distinguished himself as an apprentice to a leading Florentine painter and later served as a military architect, cartographer, sculptor, and muralist for hire.

His paintings and drawings, such as the “Mona Lisa,” “The Last Supper,” and the “Vitruvian Man,” are among the most celebrated works of all time and his art was often equaled by his pursuits in science and engineering.

“Leonard da Vinci” follows the artist’s evolution as a draftsman and painter, scientist and engineer, who used notebooks to explore an astonishing array of subjects including painting, philosophy, engineering, warfare, anatomy, and geography, among many others.

Though Leonardo intended to publish his writings, he never did, but the film delves into those he left behind to get inside his mind as he strove to master the laws of nature and apply them to his endeavors.

Leonardo’s personal story is shaped by the Italian Renaissance, and the Ken Burns documentary film will almost certainly bring true meaning to the word “polymath” as applied to the quintessential Renaissance man.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.