Since today's column appears in our home and garden section in the print editions of The Times, I wanted to share some great news passed along to me by faithful reader Suzanna Tudor of Valparaiso.
Our own weekly gardening columnist Jean Starr will join locals Jim Hitz, executive director for Taltree Arboretum and Maureen Phillips, Porter County Master Gardener member will be on Mike Nowak's gardening show on Chicago radio WCPT 820 AM at noon on Sun., Jan. 18. Nowak used to be on WGN Radio but has now moved.
They will be discussing the 6th Annual Gardening Show held in the spacious Porter County Fairgrounds and Exposition Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24. This year, there will be 10 presentations, including a seed and bulb exchange, a juried flower show, photography contest, over 50 vendors, and food by Suzie's Restaurant and Catering in Valparaiso.
Gene Bush, a national gardening writer is this year's featured speaker and Kunso Kim, curator of Living Collections at Morton Arboretum will also be featured as part of a question and answer session.
For more info, visit pcgarden.info/gardening_show.
University theater buzz
Late last month, Valaraiso University Theater Professor John Steven Paul shared with me a great story about a "little reunion" this month he had with several VU grads at a gathering at a quaint pub eatery in the Streeterville neighborhood of downtown Chicago. One of the alums was Jamie Petitto, a VU 2008 Radio-TV major, Christ College honors student, who had been a playwriting student of Paul's. Petitto now works for International Creative Management (ICM) in Los Angeles. When Paul told Petitto that the VU Theatre would be producing "The Shape of Things," the wonderful play by Neil LaBute, this spring semester, Petitto casually mentions: "Oh, LaBute is a client of ours, maybe he'll fly out to see it."
Within the week, Paul got a message from Petitto (on the Facebook Web site), that LaBute, certainly a major voice in American playwriting, will to be doing a reading of his work at the Profiles Theatre in Chicago. On Saturday, Jan. 3, Paul and his always effervescent wife Margaret Franson, Associate Dean of VU Christ College honors program (and always a favorite of mine while I was a VU student myself) "zipped" into Chicago, as he described it to me, for what was a great one-night opportunity to hear LaBute and other actors, including Steppenwolf actor Robert Brueler, read from LaBute's newest work in what Paul describes as an intimate theatre "about the size of the VU Schnabel Hall TV studio.
While chatting with Paul and Franson, LaBute was very complimentary of working with Petitto, who is a great representation of VU.
As Paul puts it: "Ah, the joy of teaching and keeping in touch with Valpo students!"
Mark your calendars, "The Shape of Things" opens at the VU Center for Performing Arts April 2 and will run for several performances throughout that weekend.
The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at ppotempa@nwitimes.com or 219.852.4327.
celeBirthdays
Museum executive Thomas Hoving ("20/20") is 78. Actress Margaret O'Brien ("Meet Me in St. Louis") is 72. Singer Don Van Vliet aka Captain Beefheart is 68. Actress Andrea Martin is 62. Actor-director Mario Van Peebles is 52. Actor James Nesbitt ("Waking Ned Devine") is 44. Singer Lisa Lisa of Lisa Lisa and the Cult Jam is 42. Actor Chad Lowe is 41. Actress Regina King is 38. Actor Eddie Cahill ("CSI: New York") is 31.
