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4A Daily News – Thursday, February 16, 2012 Pastimes Rumors opens tonight at RBUHS Arts & entertainment Search for Talent Show The Red Bluf f Exchange Club invites the people of Tehama Coun- ty to come to Red Bluff's historic State Theatre on Saturday, Feb. 18 to attend a gala evening of perfor- mances by 22 outstanding, talented young people who will be competing in the 6th Annual Exchange Club Search for Talent show. This year's show will be opened by former Search for Talent winner and up and coming Country Western per- former Stacy Stone. Following Stone, the evening's perfor- mance will feature four acts in the Primary (ages 6-9) Divi- sion and eight acts each in the Junior and Senior Divisions. At the end of the performances, awards and prizes will Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb Red Bluff Union High School students Dylan Dorman, Ryan Coley, Zach Archer and Mark Smith practice a scene for the play Rumors, which will be performed at 7 tonight and Friday at the Performing Arts Center on campus. Cost is $3. Sean Jones to play Redding Canadian R&B sensation and recording artist Sean Jones will take concertgoers on a nostalgic journey to Motown and beyond at the historic Cascade Theatre on Wednesday, Feb. 22, starting at 7:30pm. Tickets for this performance are $35 for adults and $15 for students, available at the the- ater box office. For additional information call 247-7355, or visit www.shastalive.com. Jones began singing in high school and soon joined the R&B group "In Essence" garnering two hit singles ("You'll Never Find," and "Friend of Mine"), the 2003 Much Music Video of the Year Award and the 2002 Juno Award for R&B Recording of Year. Since that time, he has pursued a solo career, devoting himself to classic romantic songs. This effort led to the EP release "This is Love" in 2008 and a consequent national tour; his first full length album is currently in progress. The tour is backed by a full band. Off stage Jones is the official spokesman for Canadian-based AKW Charities, providing education and skill development for special needs children in Afghanistan. To view a promotional video of Jones, visit, www.youtube.com/user/liveonstageinc2011#p/ u/33/dEFbr24npQM. The Shasta Community Concert Association seeks to enrich the community by providing live concerts and through its Fine Arts Enrich- ment outreach program for students. Membership benefits include reciprocity with several neighboring community concert associations. be awarded to the contestants, and the First Place winners in each division will be invited to perform and compete in the Exchange Club District Search for Talent Competition, which will be held at Gold Country Casino in Oroville May 4. In past years, winners of the Red Bluff competition — Chad Bushnell, Devin Penner, Ashiah Scharaga and Stacy Stone — have won at the district level. Saturday's show will begin at 7 p.m. Attendees are advised to arrive early as it is expected that this gala event will sell out. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for ages 10 to 18. Chil- dren younger than 10 will be admitted free of charge. The proceeds from the evening provide the prizes and awards to the contestants and support for the programs of the Exchange Club. Esser named February Artist of the Month Red Bluff Art Associa- tion artist of the month for February is local artist and porcelain painter, Glenna Esser. "A real sweetheart," said association President Connie Maxey. "Quiet, unassuming, lovely woman with many beauti- ful talents." Esser began her inter- est in art at a very early age. Born on a farm in southern Ontario, Canada, she attended a one-room school house. When she entered a couple of crayon sketches in the local coun- try fair, she was delighted to receive first prizes on both. She still has those 75 years later. Moving from the coun- try to the city, her parents encouraged her artistic flair by providing instruc- tion from local artists in pen and ink drawings and oil painting. In her teens she was selling oil paint- ings to local friends and neighbors. Her father, who went into Real Estate, enjoyed sporting her hand-painted neckties about town. Esser graduated from Courtesy photo Glenna Esser poses with a recent painting. Toronto Teachers College in 1952. She was delight- ed to find that her interest in art was helpful in teaching her first graders phonics. Her pupils enjoyed her blackboard illustrations of the sounds of words ("c" for cat, "p" for pig, etc). She found that the students learned to read more quickly and were getting an art lesson at the same time. Eventually, Esser moved to California where she met her hus- band Fred. Here she became interested in china painting. This is a process where paint is applied to white china and fired in a kiln at tempera- tures up to 1,500 degrees. This is done several times until the desired depth of color is achieved. She became a member of the World Organization of China Painters and jokes that even her five cats eat off hand painted china. Upon moving from the Bay Area to Cottonwood, she became president of the Porcelain Painters of Shasta Wonderland, a group that met in Redding once a month. Currently, Esser says, "I am espe- cially glad to be a member of the Red Bluff Art Association which has lots of demos and cri- tiques for inspiration." Esser has sold her oil paintings and porcelain at The Big Picture and Heart Felt Designs in Red Bluff. She received several blue ribbons for entries in the Shasta and Tehama coun- ty fairs. RBAA, bringing art opportunities, education and enrichment to the North Valley, meets 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursdays at the Snug Harbor Mobile Home Park Recre- ation Room, 600 Rio Vista Ave. in Red Bluff. For information call 527- 4810 or write RBAA, P.O. Box 944, Red Bluff, CA 96080. Published through an event co-sponsorship agreement with the Daily News