Continuing to celebrate its 40th anniversary, Smith-Madrone teamed up with ODC Theater in San Franciscoon July 11 for ODC’s 40th birthday festivities. Ring in Rob’s Middle Ages was a fundraiser honoring both the organization’s 40th birthday and Artistic Director Rob Bailis’ 40th birthday. The evening was a collection of vignettes from Bailis’ artistic life as well as a sampling of work previewing ODC’s 2011-2012 season. It was quite a potpourri—from Gershwin’s Summertime (clarinet & voice) to La Vie en Rose performed in Korean to a skateboarding rap performance and Walt Whitman’s When Violets Last In The Courtyard Bloomed set to music to excerpts from Rob Bailis and Jack Perla’s opera Love/Hate. “I don’t really know how to turn forty. Does anyone?” Bailis said to the attendees. Founded byBrenda Way, ODC (Oberlin Dance Collective) has been the mobilizing force behind countless artists both fromSan Franciscoas well as internationally based. ODC Theater exists to empower innovative artists, by commissioning, presenting, mentoring and space access. ODC also advocates for the performing arts as an essential component of life inSan Francisco; ODC Theater—handsomely renovated three years ago and reopened in 2010–is the site of over 150 performances a year. More at www.odctheater.org. Smith-Madrone’s 2008 Chardonnay and 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon were offered at both intermissions. Stu Smith, the founder and General Partner, was asked to comment about the winery’s 40th birthday and its linkage to ODC—which Smith did in an analogy to the word “artisan:” “In the beginning we’d tell people we were an artisanal winery up on a mountain in the Napa Valley,” Smith said, “and they’d have to go look it up! Today people know that ‘artisanal’ stands for quality, a personal touch and small-scale artistic endeavors—all of which we share with ODC.” A glimpse: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8QUtXOih8A
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