Mary Damiano’s Arts Scene

Mary Damiano. Photo by David Vance

Can Film Festival
I'm a sucker for holiday movies. It's just not Christmas unless I get a dose of It's a Wonderful Life or Meet Me in St. Louis . Well, the folks at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival are offering just thing to get movie lovers in the holiday spirit. The 2 nd Annual Can Film Festival which runs December 9-11 at Cinema Paradiso in Fort Lauderdale, features 10 holiday-themed films, including the classics— Christmas in Connecticut with Barbara Stanwyck , The Bells of St. Mary's with Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman , Meet John Doe with Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck , and The Lemon Drop Kid with Bob Hope —modern favorites— Home Alone with Macauley Culkin , Scrooged with Bill Murray , National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase —and some darker fare— A Midnight Clear with Ethan Hawke and Die Hard with Bruce Willis . ( Die Hard , you say? Well, it did take place on Christmas Eve.) There will also be a program of vintage cartoons, including Olive: The Other Reindeer . The price of admission for each film is two canned goods or one new unwrapped toy, which will benefit Broward Partnership for the Homeless and Childnet. Cinema Paradiso is located at 503 SE 6 th St. in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
For more information, call 954-525-FILM (3456) or http://www.fliff.com/.

Stacy Schwartz as Emma and Rachel Jones as Vienna in Johnny Guitar

Campy Cult Comedy
And speaking of movies, fans of 1950's films might remember the campy cult movie Johnny Guitar , starring Joan Crawford , Sterling Hayden and Mercedes McCambridge , a melodramatic black and white western with plenty of sexual undertones. The flick has been made into a stage musical and has just opened at the Actor's Playhouse in Coral Gables. Johnny Guitar the musical is terrific fun, with all its melodramatic elements in place, but this time it's being played for laughs. The story is simple: Tough as nails Vienna has opened a saloon outside of town and is waiting for the railroad to come by and turn the area into a boom town. Believing there might be trouble, she sends for her old love Johnny “Guitar” Logan as her own hired gunslinger, though Johnny would rather strum than shoot. But when a stagecoach driver is killed and Vienna's friends are suspected, she's implicated as well, and her arch enemy Emma Smalls just won't rest as long as Vienna is breathing. The title character of Johnny Guitar is played by David Kelley , a tall drink of water with a handsome face and a Clint Eastwood inflection in his voice. But the show belongs to the women, Rachel Jones as the strong but misunderstood Vienna and Stacy Schwartz as the out for blood Emma Smalls. There's an interesting lesbian undercurrent to their relationship, and they even indulge in a catfight worthy of Krystal and Alexis. Johnny Guitar runs through December 18. For more information, visit http://www.actorsplayhouse.org/.

Now Playing
And speaking of theatre, there's a nice selection of openings perfect for taking a break from the holiday rush. At New Theatre in Coral Gables http://www.new-theatre.org/ there's Ladies and Not So Gentlewomen , a play with music, which runs through January 1. Up in Palm Beach County at Manalapan's Florida Stage Theatre, http://www.floridastage.org/ Athol Fugard's Exits and Entrances opens Dec. 9 and runs through January 15. For some twisted holiday spirit, check out The Eight: Reindeer Monologues at the Sol Theatre www.soltheatre.com in Fort Lauderdale. It runs through December 18. Out west in Plantation, there's the Mosaic Theatre's http://www.mosaictheatre.com/ production of Match , which also runs through December 18.

Arts Fest Seeks Volunteers
The Coconut Grove Arts Festival is looking for volunteers to help out with the 43 rd annual festival, which takes place February 18-20, 2006. Art enthusiasts are needed to assist artists, staff merchandise, ticketing areas and vintage booth, and help out with the Kid's Creative Corner, a hands-on workshop for children. Two shifts are available each day, 9 a.m. –2 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. All volunteers will receive a souvenir poster and T-shirt, but volunteers who work all three full days will receive a framed poster. Students will also receive community service points. No experience is needed and everyone 16 years of age and up is welcome to volunteer. For a volunteer application and for more information about the Coconut Grove Arts Festival, visit http://www.coconutgroveartsfest.com/.

Holiday Giving
If you're looking for a different kind of gift this year to give to the folks on your list, here's an idea that will keep you at of the maul—I mean mall—this month. Give cultural gifts that your friends and family can enjoy. All live theatres offer gift certificates for future shows, so why not treat someone on your list to the gift of theatre? Or perhaps pick up some opera tickets for the music lover on your list. Movie theatres also offer gift cards, so the next time you catch a flick, you can buy a few cards and get some shopping done. Museum memberships also make great gifts, while museum gift shops offer unique items without the hassle department stores. Memberships to the Museum of Contemporary Art in North Miami, for example, begin at just $30, and include a year's worth of free museum admission, invitations to special member's events, advance notice of special events, the MOCA newsletter and 10% off gift shop purchases. A one-year membership to the Miami Beach Botanical Gardens might be the perfect gift for the gardener in your life—memberships begin at only $25 and include free admission to the gardens and invitations to their horticulture-related seminars and workshops. Visit the theatre, organization, or museum website of your choice for more information.

If you have an upcoming event and want to get the word out on MiamiArtZine.com, contact Mary Damiano at StarrWriter2000@aol.com.