Bad Santa and the Angry Elves at Maxine’s

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At Maxine’s on Shine the doorman was checking his list twice and the venue started to fill. This show was a precursor to Bad Santa and the Angry Elves going to Edinburgh in a month. Jameson’s whisky was a sponsor, and all drink proceeds would help get the group over to Scotland. Knowing that the drink sales were helping the group, I had to order several Santa themed drinks with chocolate and green whipped cream. The drinks had a kick and probably influenced the sketch. Christmas is here!

My seat was as close to the stage as you can get without being on stage. I had to climb over some speakers and tons of chords to squeeze into my seat wedged against the wall. Diane was seated across from me and we had some wonderful war stories to exchange before the band got on stage. I had searched for a Christmas themed shirt but don’t have any. Diane also wanted to be Christmas fashionable but could only find a blouse covered in hearts. That was close enough. The director got up to the microphone and let us know that the band was having a bite in the back room before the show. We joked that they probably were having a few swigs of spiked eggnog.

This Santa has daddy issues. Being the son of THE Santa, Kris Kringle IV has big shoes to fill. The other sons of Santa Kris II, and Kris III, had no desire to work in the family business. Kris IV brought a radical idea to his dad by suggesting that maybe Christmas should be on every day of the year instead of just December 25. Dad wasn’t having it. Riffs from familiar Pink Floyd songs echoed through Maxine’s. Santa and the Elves were singing, “All in all its just another gift from The MALL.”

Rather than the Elves being Angry, it was Santa who seemed angry as he shouted into the void that every day deserved the Christmas spirit of Kindness, Joy and Gratitude. In a world gone mad, that message is needed now more than ever. The elves were not particularly petite except for the one tied up to a microphone stand.

Kris climbed on the bar to be sure everyone could see him as he sang the punk, hard edged rock and roll Christmas tunes. Besides building Christmas carols from Pink Floyd songs, they also had Prince inspired holiday music. Everyone in the room was beaming. If there was room to dance in the aisles I am sure people would have done that. Kris was certainly dancing up a storm with the elf with the orange washboard abs.

I was flying high by the end of the three hour set and the lines were swarming all over the page. Stop doom scrolling for a moment and pretend Americans are not being put in concentration camps, and pretend a narcissistic geriatric patient who fancies himself a dictator isn’t in charge of this country and live each day with Kindness, Joy and Gratitude, mother F#cker.

Bad Santa and the Angry Elves Blitzkrieg Maxine’s

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Bad Santa and the Angry Elves have been performing their rebellious, punk-rock twist on Christmas tunes around Orlando for some time. These shows were short high octane sets. Bad Santa has been expanded into a 90 minute show that builds on the premise that this Santa aka, Kris Kringle IV, is the son of THE Santa and he is trying to win his fathers respect by promoting the idea that Christmas should not be one day a year but should be celebrated every day of the year with small acts of kindness generosity, joy and giving. This radical idea caused a family rift.

This dress rehearsal was held in a beautiful lake front home in Winter Park. This was actually my old stomping grounds. I lived a few blocks away for a summer and did a series of paintings of the sunsets at the lake. The home owner is an avid art collector and he gave me a tour of his collection. A large flip board display in a bedroom showcased classic pin up art along with pop art from such pop art giants like Roy Lichtenstein. In the living room there was an original Soviet propaganda poster that showed a woman half in darkness with the dark representing the past while the light hinted at a positive future. I loved that I got to sketch amazing art along with the live performance.

Much of the early music in the show is based on one of my favorite bands, Pink Floyd. It was very fun singing along to the new Christmas themed lyrics to very familiar dark and moody Pink Floyd tunes. The eclectic mix of edgy tunes kept coming. If people go to the show expecting a saccharine sweet Christmas show they will not know what hit them. Santa started out the show all decked out in his full hot red suit but as things heated up, the winter suit and hat were pealed off with gusto allowing his jiggling belly ample room to breathe. Santa is very athletic as he acted as the hard core lead singer in this Angry Elves band. One of the microphones was misbehaving but the energy of the show never faltered.

One rather tall elf had on a muscle bound tee shirt that gave him the appearance of washboard abs in contrast to Santa’s belly. This elf in his green suit was all over the stage, sometimes singing back up and sometimes on guitar. I had trouble deciding where I should place him in my sketch. Santa was indeed angry as he sang about brotherly love in a world where conflict out shines compassion.

There is a constant driving energy to the show that had me whooping and hollering. Bad Santa and the Angry Elves with be performing excerpts from the show at at Maxine’s on Shine before they bring the show to Edinburgh Fringe later this year. There is a show on July 20th with doors open at 6PM and show at 6:30PM. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.

A rebellious and loud Christmas should indeed be celebrated every day of the year.

Interview at Maxine’s

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JB Webb and the Reverend produce a podcast about the Orlando Arts and Culture scene called The JB Rev Show. I recently did some art work for this show which depicted this dynamic duo as if on the cover of a comic book. It was fun working with JB to make that happen.

I was called in to Maxine’s on Shine for an interview on the show. The production was staged in the red room in the back corner of the restaurant. Before the place became the restaurant it is today this room was used to stage weddings. Now it’s walls are blood red and it has plenty of romantic and erotic art.

The JB REV Show is quirky and fast paced. I put on the headphones and joined in for the ride and it was over before I knew what hit me. Honestly I am not sure if I got a word into the mix. I was so mesmerized by the quirky hosts. I then settled in to sketch the production as they interviewed their next guest, Tony Mauss who was the husband of Billy Maines.

My life is measured by the pages in my sketchbooks. Just 15 pages prior to this sketch, I had sketched Billy Maines as he talked about his experiences after the Pulse Nightclub Massacre. Shortly after doing that sketch I found out that Billy had been let go from Watermark where he was the editor and chief, and shortly after, he died on Friday, July 21, 2017 at the age of 45. It was a real shock since he seemed in good health the day we spoke with him. He did joke about a persistent cough.

In a statement to the Orlando Weekly, Tony said, “My husband, Billy Manes, passed away peacefully on Friday afternoon
surrounded by his family of friends. He had been ill for a couple of
weeks with what turned out to be pneumonia, and by the time we sought
medical attention, it was too far advanced. He died due to complications
of his condition leading to organ failure.”

Mauss continued, “Billy Manes was a walking fucking miracle, a man who
fought ferociously to create a world where justice, equality and respect
were the cornerstones of his community. He loved Orlando. He knew what
was possible here in this sprawling mass of ex-pats, misfits,
introverts, seekers, party people, bookworms, performers, makers,
artists and friends. His driving force was love. He loved you, Orlando,
and he knew of your love for him. He fed off it; it sustained him. He
would have fought proudly for each and every one of you forever.
Unfortunately, his body had other plans.

“So … grieve, Orlando, grieve, but don’t forget to laugh, create joy, and love each other wildly. That would honor him.”

Though the JB Rev Show makes a point of being irreverent, they toned down the jokes a notch to pay tribute to a man who had spent his life reporting about local politics in the Orlando Weekly and Watermark, making the seemingly boring inner workings of local government entertaining and relevant.

Weekend Top 6 Picks for November 17 and 18, 2018

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Saturday November 17, 2018

 8am to 1pm Free. Parramore Farmers Market. The east side of the Orlando City Stadium, across from City View. Purchase quality, fresh and healthy food grown in your own
neighborhood by local farmers, including Fleet Farming, Growing Orlando,
and other community growers.

3pm to 8pm Buy food and drink. Lucky 7 Rock the Block Party / Maxine’s 7th Anniversary Party. Maxine’s on Shine 337 N Shine Ave, Orlando, Florida 32803. WOW… Has Time Flown By. Seven Years, We Says, We Says… Seven Years
of Epicurean Cheer. Right Here. Because of You, Doing What You Do..We
Have Thrived, And That Ain’t No Jive!!! So let’s have a massive
celebration, an exclamation, a City Beautiful proclamation, of a good
ole block partay staycation, where life is good in the neighborhood!
FREE SHOW DON”T YOU KNOW! We will wage you will find no better musical
sage on any stage, and vaudevillian performers too, round out the
performing crew. The Shine Ave band shell will be a rocking with Eugene
Snowden and Friends, Katie Burkess Band and Maygen Navarro street side,
and Juno Smile does the lyrical mile on the inside. Vaudeville llc,
will be flowing creativity. Win a holiday party for 10, while you have
an opportunity, to help others in our Community. The restaurant will be
open all day for food and tasty beverage purchases of your choosing,
everyone’s a winner.. no losing. All ages, and well behaved four legged
friends welcome. We truly appreciate your embrace, of our sexy,
comfortable and delicious space. – Cheers, Kirt and Maxine Earhart
“Much Love to All of You”

5pm to 9pm Free. McRay Holiday Open House. 1000 Arlington St, Orlando, FL 32805. It’s time for Holiday Open House! Meet artists, tour studios, buy unique gifts! Creations by 23 Artists to Be Featured.

McRae Art Studios will kick off the holidays with
their Holiday Open House on Saturday, Nov. 17. The annual event, open
to the public, will be in the studio group’s new home in Orlando. Last
year, the 23-member artist collective, the largest in Central Florida,
returned to the city where it was founded 32 years ago.

The eagerly awaited annual Holiday Open House at McRae (mcraeartstudios.com)
gives art collectors and gift-givers a unique opportunity to browse
artist studios, visit with the artists and purchase original art.
Hundreds of original art works will be available including paintings,
pastels, photographs, mixed media, sculpture, jewelry and ceramics.

Secure on-site parking is available.

MCRAE
ART STUDIOS, a collective of 23 independent artists founded in 1986,
was established to allow member artists to work together and to attract
community attention to the area’s outstanding talent. McRae maintains
the highest level of artistic accomplishment by bringing artists into
the group by a jury process. It has been home to many nationally
recognized artists. Twice a year, McRae hosts Open Houses that attract
thousands of visitors and collectors.

Sunday November 18, 2018

10am to Noon. Free. Heartfulness Relaxation and Meditation Class. University, 5200 Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL 32811. The Method of Heartfulness A simple and practical way to experience the heart’s unlimited resources.

Noon to 1pm Free. Yoga. Near Lake Eola red gazebo. Bring your own mat.

Noon to 3pm Donation based. Music at the Casa. Vocalist Shirley Wang. Casa Feliz Historic Home Museum, 656 N Park Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789. Members of the public are invited to visit our historic home museum on a
Sunday afternoon to listen to live music and take a tour
of our historic home museum and the James Gamble Rogers II Studio by
trained docents.

Art Opening at Maxine’s on Shine.

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Right before Valentine’s Day I went to Maxine’s on Shine (337 Shine Ave, Orlando, FL 32803) for an art opening. The art for the evening was all predictably heart shaped. All of the canvases had a heart or several hearts as the center of interest for the composition. This local eatery has always supported local artists. I had a solo show there several years ago and it was a great experience. All of the nails used to hang the art are in place so hanging a show can take less than an hour. There is no careful measuring or aligning works along a line.  The artist was Ronda Richley. She paints with a heartfelt passion. Pieces are priced up to $12,000.

Artists were gathered around a table top showing their support for the art on the walls. The wine flowed and conversations flourished. Other heart art was by RV (Robin Van Arsdol), a local urban artist who had a book which featured his wor, along with renowned artists like Keith Haring. I flipped through the book, excited to see the graffiti art work from the booming 1980s.

Mardi Gras at The Orlando Museum of Art

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From 6-9 pm on the first Thursday of each month, Central Florida has an opportunity to discover local artists, listen to live music and mingle with an eclectic mix of people. There are cash bars serving wine, beer, soft drinks and water, and café offerings from area restaurants. The event is hosted by the Associates of the Orlando Museum of Art (2416 N. Mills Ave Orlando, Florida). The museum refers to the event as “Orlando’s original art party”.

The February First Thursday’s theme was Mardi Gras. I arrived rather late and settled on sketching the band before they broke down for the night. High-spirited guests were dancing to the music. There was a drag show in the front gallery, but when I walked in they were walking out. I seemed to be one step behind every performance that night. There were plenty of golden masks and opulent dresses. I just didn’t manage to capture any in the one quick sketch I did. Maxine of Maxine’s on Shine offered some gumbo at the end of the night and it was absolutely delicious. It had just enough kick.The taste brought back vivid memories of the crowded Bourbon Street in New Orleans in which you need to learn how to navigate the flow of the crowd not through annoyance and avoidance, but by accepting the weaving and constant contact. It’s glorious when you are in the moment.

Maxine’s first price fix 3 course winemaker dinner.

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I was invited to be part of the first winemaker dinner at Maxine’s on Shine (337 Shine Ave, Orlando, FL 32803). Jeff Meyers, the GM, Vice President, and head winemaker at Terra D’ Oro was on hand to introduce each wine that went with each of the three courses. We arrived a bit early, and I found my spot at the end of a long table to take in the scene. People mingled near the bar, as I blocked in the scene lightly in pencil. As people took their seats I inked them into the sketch. 1+1, a jazz duo performed live. Their music hearkened back to the 60s and 70s with a very nostalgic and consistent play list. I tried playing, “Name that Tune”, as everyone got seated for the first course.

The first course, was Saku Block Tuna, seared rare, with a black and white sesame seed crust.  There was a ginger cream sauce to dip it is. There was also Meatballs Wellington in a phyllo pastry on a bed blue cheese and spinach, with Jalepeno cilantro aioli for dipping. The wine paring was a white Terra D’ Oro Miscato. This sweet wine was my favorite of the evening and I indulged in a second glass. 

 

The second course was a southern citrus salad with a mix of fresh fruit, gorgonzola, spiced almonds and vinaigrette. This was paired with a red Terra D’ Oro Barbara. The sweet salad was perfect with the smooth tasting Barbera. Jeff explained that Terra D’ Oro means land of gold. Wines were first created in this area of California starting in the 1850’s by Italian Immigrants. The weather is perfect and the sunshine plentiful.

The opening act was a Florida red grouper with mango salsa and cous cous. It was paired with a Terrie D’ Oro Chevin Blanc Viognier Blend. This pairing was absolutely delicious. My sketch perch was pretty far from my plate, and I had to lean way forward to scoop up fish a cous cous with my fork. I would use my palette as a safety net, as I leaned back and delicately moved the fork to my mouth. Cous Cous kept spilling off the fork onto my palette. There is no refined way to flick food off of an art palette, so I left it where it was, hoping no one noticed. I did another painting today and the cous cous was still there, but now covered in blue paint. Now that I’m writing this I realize I need to take a writing break and get the food off my palette right now. 

The Main Event was a Petite Filet Mignon, medium rare,  with Winter Hunter Sauce, a twice baked potato, and chef select vegetables. The executive chef, George Vogelbacher was on vacation on a cruise ship, so his well trained staff prepared the dinner without him. The woman to my right felt that the meat was over cooked, but it tasted fine to me. After four cups of wine any thing would taste like heaven to me. The filet was paired with a Terra D’ Oro Petite Sirah. This was the wine with the most tannins and it left a dry lingering full bodied after taste. 

Desert was an “Ode to Elvis” with a triple chocolate brownie with bacon pecan brittle, a spiced anglaise, and a fruit compote. This was paired with a Terra D’ Oro “Denver Vineyard” Zinfandel. Kirt Earhart thanked everyone for coming with his signature rhyme that he improvised on the spot. Before the right wound down Maxine took up a microphone and sang with the band. There were selfies and smiles with hugs all around. The evening was a true epicurean delight that celebrated passion and life. The cost was $70 per person all inclusive of tax and tip. 5 courses including wine pairing. Maxine’s will be hosting similar wine pairing events in the future and trust me this will become one of the most sought after evenings in town. This intimate neighborhood venue offers the best in southern urban hospitality. 

ODD7 was held at Maxine’s on Shine.

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On January 7th we held the first Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) event of the new year at Maxine’s on Shine (337 N Shine Ave, Orlando, Florida). Several tables were pushed together in front of the stage and amazingly eight artists filled every single seat. Two couples had heard about the event thanks to the Orlando Weekly. Actually all the artists were new to the experience except Audrey Zinder who runs the Sunday open figure drawing sessions at Crealde. I keep saying I wan to go each week for figure drawing but I’ve made a commitment to keep Sundays “Sketch free” so that I ha a day of rest. the only thing I do on Sundays is put together the week end Top 6 Picks.

I took the waitresses advice on a red wine and ordered muscles as an appetizer and then a full seafood stew. The food was amazing, and, since I was sketching the stage the dinner lingered for hours. I tend to get lost in the sketch for a while and then surface to play host for a bit. I have an ongoing project which is an eternal accordion sketchbook. It is often 2 good way to get new artists a chance to sketch something silly and small. I was quite happy that two writers joined the ODD group on this sketch outing. Janet Benge in a high heel respected author and she has just started doing watercolors. Her charming sketches might someday work their way into a children book. Logan Anderson is y poet who I see quite often at  events in town. He reminds me of an Urban Sketcher because he always has a leather satchel over his shoulder in which he carries his writing supplies. Where I catch a scene using lines and washes, he digs deep into the scene with his words.

Since there were three couples, I suggested that artists face each other and do five minute ruthless portraits of each other. The energy at the table multiplied as they worked, and then there was plenty of laughter when the five minute were up. This is a great was for artists to break the ice. Conversations blossomed. I learned where to find some real talented tattoo artists. I’ve sketched tattoo artists at work before and I am fascinated by the long labor of love. One artist had tried to be a tattoo artist, but the constant buzz of the electric needle caused his hand to go numb. It is sort of like wanting to be a sea captain but finding out you get sea sick.

Nick Landess performed for well over two hours on piano and guitar. I often feel like I’m the only person in a room who truly focuses on the talent that plays live background music in a bar, restaurant or at an event. I’m convinced that I become invisible when I’m sketching. I admire a performer who can work despite all the conversations going on in a room. Once my sketch ass done, I shouted to be heard at the vibrant conversation be the artists at the table. I had more red wines than I should have. A song on the radio on the drive home caused me to pause and remember a  Disney Feature Animation friend, Christine Lawrence Finney, who had died unexpectedly at the age of 47. The evenings frivolity turned to sadness. “Something touched me deep inside, the day the music died.”

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ODD6 at Falcon Bar and Gallery.

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Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) ventures to a new bar each month to sample beers and sketch. There is no model fee and no instruction. This is just a chance to get out, meet fellow artists and draw. I’m hoping to sketch in Central Florida’s best dive bars, so suggestions are always welcome. Mondays are usually slow event wise in Orlando so ODD usually happens on the First Monday of each Month. In December I changed the date to a Tuesday since Kirt and Maxine Earhard had a wedding ceremony on Monday. In their honor, January’s ODD will be at Maxine’s on Shine.

Melissa Marie was gracious about letting artists descend on The Falcon Bar and Gallery (819 E Tosh-0, Washington St, Orlando, FL) on December 8th. I never know how many artists will show up, I might sketch alone, or there could be up to a dozen artists who stop out. On route to the Falcon bar, I learned that Melissa
Marie’s sister, Anthea, had just died at the tender age of 32 from a pulmonary embolism.The message appeared in my Facebook news feed and then flickered off to show a more recent post. My heart goes out to Melissa and her family.

The bar was empty when I arrived around 6pm except for the bar tender. I ordered a cider and started sketching. An open mic night was scheduled to begin at 8pm so I hoped some of the stools would fill up by then. Brian OHalloran who has attended past ODD events stopped in. I told him the news about Melissa Marie’s sister and then he did a black somber sketch of the Falcon Bar o his iPad. The only color in his sketch was the red candles which to him represented sacred funeral candles. My sketch, has a similar dark feeling. All the art on the walls was by local artists. The theme seemed to be pop culture, super heroes and manga. Perhaps there was no theme.

The bar tender was watching a show called Tosh-O on TV. There was an insanely long clip of a woman tweaking, so I sketched the gyrating butt on the screen. Another sine, sh shouted “gross! and I glanced at the tube to see a weight lifter vomiting as he lifted the dumb bells over his shoulders. I wished I hadn’t looked up It seems a sad commentary on what Americans need to see to be entertained.

Brian and I chatted for a while after our sketches were done. I had missed a sketch opportunity he had given me a tip about. It was a candle light service at an angel statue for women who had lost children in childbirth or at a young age. He and his wife Maggie attended and he said it was one of the most emotional experiences he has ever had.

I had brought in a stack of paper for an ODD sketching concept I wanted to try out. I call it a $ketch Off. Artists face each other on bar stools and are given 5 minutes to sketch each other. Neither artist is posing, so it is a bit hectic and the results can be unexpected especially after a few drinks. Since there were just two artists, it was a chance to try it out. I switched to pence and paper since me tablet battery was low. Brian was game, and he worked on his iPad, although he said he was a bit intimidated at first. He is an architect, so people aren’t his specialty. While doing the sketch, he laughed off his concerns, and the result is far more interesting than a realistic depiction. Asking people to pose for five minute is actually outside my comfort zone as well. I tend to usually keep my distance and watch a seen unfold from afar. At some galas and costumed events I should start asking people to pose so I can capture some quick close up sketches.

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Benoit Glazer at Avalon Island

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On the third Monday of each month, The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando Florida), hosts the In Between Series, a music series before the art goes on the wall for Third Thursday. June was a bit different because the nude photos by Yuri Maiorov  stayed on the walls until a fee the concert. Benoit Glazer usually hosts concerts in his custom built acoustic living room in the White House, he works at Cirque Du Soleil in Downtown Disney as the composer. He was on the trumpet along with Dan Jordan, Doug Matthews and Bobby Koelble some of the
greatest jazz musicians from Central Florida.

There were lofty sounds from flutes and clarinets, African flavors, and funky
odd meters, with a touch of sad ballads and angry mobs. The music related the story of a storyteller. It was about 2 boy named Abu, and his muse Lela. The music ebbed and flowed with intensity. The event was catered by Maxine’s on Shine.