Abundance of Crockett talent bodes well for lively July 23 event
The first Port Costa Talent Show was held in a small park at the end of town. People brought their own chairs and blankets and spread out on the grass to enjoy the show. The program featured a dog that howled in harmony with "Glow Worm" played on a clarinet, a woman who demonstrated the art of spinning wool (still the longest Talent Show act on record), and a piece from a Sam Shepard play, interrupted twice by passing freight trains.
That was nearly 20 years ago, and yet today the Port Costa Talent Show retains its crown as the avant-garde of hometown entertainment. Where else, you may ask, would the Oo-La-La’s meet the Who-La-La’s? Where else would the Blues Brothers meet the Andrews Sisters?
Today the event is staged at the Port Costa School as a fund raiser to restore the old school building. Admission is $5.00, kids under 12 are free. The show is held outdoors, on a stage built in front of the school. This year about two dozen acts are included, most of which are performed in three minutes or less.
A glance at the entertainment roster shows a bumper crop of talent from Crockett in the categories of song, dance and comedy. From Port Costa, Ginger the Wonder Dog will be making a comeback as she takes up her biggest challenge, The Hoop of Flames. Championship tap dancers, Taiko drummers, blues singers and more are in the wings, ready to entertain the crowd.
WHAT’S YOUR SIGN? Following a full morning with the volunteer crew on the souvenir T-shirt assembly line, Dee Stewart finishes up a street banner to place on the school fence.
As part of the fund raiser, delicious barbecued chicken, sausages and hot dogs will be sold, along with fresh baked bread, green salad, chips and salsa, draft beer, sodas and lemonade. Souvenir Port Costa Talent Show T-shirts will also be sold at the bargain price of $10.00 each.
A raffle will be held at intervals for many attractive prizes: Three handmade quilts, a dinner and dancing cruise aboard the California Wine Ship out of Vallejo, ceramic works by Clayton Bailey and Kathy Kearns, gift certificates from Port Costa’s Bull Valley Inn and the Dead Fish in Crockett, a romantic Evening at Home basket, a real framed and signed Talent Show poster, Oakland A’s tickets and a good deal more.
The Talent Show starts at 2:00 p.m., with the gate open at noon for food and beverages. Giant tent canopies will be in place to keep the audience cool and comfortable. Games for small children will be held from noon to 2:00 p.m.
The show is sponsored by the Port Costa Conservation Society, a non-profit organization of volunteer workers. All proceeds will go toward the PCCS goal of restoring the 1911 building for community use. The school, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is located at the junction of Canyon Lake Drive and Reservoir Road. For information about the event, call (510) 787-2254.
THE LAWN RANGER
Cutting a long swath through the tall grass, Frank Jurik guides his trusty mower through the wide green expanse of the Port Costa School baseball field. In the background above the school building are the hills of the East Bay Regional Park District's Carquinez Shoreline Park.
The Port Costa School baseball field
(click on photo to enlarge)
It was Clayton Bailey’s Clay Day at the Port Costa School on July 1. This year Clayton brought his potter’s wheel and from the back of his pickup he shaped cups, bowls, jugs and mugs. Participants added their own innovations, from an Oakland A’s baseball cap to a cat dish and a robot. After glazing the clay pieces, above, they are fired in Clayton Bailey’s 2,000
E kiln. Then a transparent glaze is applied and the pieces are fired again. Pierre Swanson, above right, thought it was all great fun. The works of art will be displayed at the Port Costa Talent Show on Sunday, July 23rd.
