friday 9|5

Mangia!

FESTA ITALIA Celebrate Monterey's Italian heritage at the 70th annual Festa Italia. Loosely translated this means: go to Mass, listen to Italian music, eat lots of food and drink lots of vino. On Friday night, Festa Italia Santa Rosalia presents "In Canto Mediterraneo," featuring the Bellini Opera House of Catania performing Italian favorites. The party continues 6am Saturday with a Mass at San Carlos Cathedral celebrating Santa Rosalia, Sicily's little saint. She's credited with saving Palermo from the Black Plague. The Mass will be followed by a parade, proceeding down Alvarado Street to the Custom House Plaza, and a blessing of the fishing fleet on Wharf #2. Enjoy Italian music, bocce ball competitions, Italian food and drinks, and crafts all day Saturday and Sunday. [JL]

Friday concert, 7:30pm. Performing Arts Center, Santa Catalina School, 1500 Mark Thomas Dr., Monterey. $25. 375-1407.
Saturday-Sunday events, 10am-7pm. Custom House Plaza, bottom of Alvarado St., Monterey. Free. 393-2263.

Dead Certain About Nothing
MUCH ADO AND DEAD CERTAIN Tonight at Carmel's Cherry Center, Conrad Selvig presents Dead Certain, a two-person psychological thriller that pits an out-of-work actor against a wheelchair-bound former dancer who is obsessed with the theater. Shades of Misery? Saturday afternoon, Unicorn Theater takes over the Adobe Gardens in Monterey for four weekends of free performances of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. (For those who insist upon sitting inside and spending money, they'll also present the show Friday evenings beginning Sept. 12 at California's First Theater, Pacific and Scott in Monterey.) [SF]

Dead Certain opens tonight at 8pm, Carl Cherry Center, Guadalupe and 4th, Carmel, 626-6796; Much Ado About Nothing opens Saturday at 3pm in the Adobe Gardens, corner of Polk and Alvarado, Monterey.

Texas Troubadour
HAMILTON LOOMIS LIVE On Hamilton Loomis' Workin' Real Hard he brags about having a six-pack of beer and a remote control. Though Loomis tries to pretend like he's a regular guy, there is nothing remotely ordinary about Loomis' musical career. Loomis learned to play the drums and piano at age five. Before his 18th birthday, the multi-instrumentalist released an album that was nominated for a Grammy. On his latest album, Loomis plays guitar, harmonica, bass, vocoder and power drill. There's nothing ordinary about that, and nothing ordinary about his performance tonight. [ST]

9pm. Sly McFly's, 700 Cannery Row, Monterey. Free. 649-8050.

saturday 9|6

Bohemian Rhapsody
ROUND THE WORLD AT KALISA'S Kalisa Moore, proprietor of La Ida's Cafe and long-reigning Queen of Cannery Row, revived her famous Friday night musical evenings about a year ago. She's just recently added on Saturday nights, and this week's "evening of international music" sounds like a doozy. Flutist Richard Mayer, a founding member of the Russian rock group ZA in 1970s Leningrad (now that was a happening music scene) will perform from his wide repertoire of classical, African-American spirituals, show tunes and jazz; Children's folksinger Nancy Raven, who sings with the Celtic group Irish Stew, will present some of her favorite tunes; and author/musician Bill Minor kicks in with more. Expect Russian, Spanish, Greek, Japanese and Irish songs, as well as poems set to music--bring on the beer milkshakes! [SF]

8pm. Kalisa's La Ida Cafe, 851 Cannery Row, Monterey. $5 cover. 656-0967.

Petal Pushers
MASTERS GARDEN TOUR Gardens of all types thrive in this climate, and creative gardeners have made the most of our water-challenged landscape and incorporated both exotic and native plants. For an entire Saturday, six different gardens from Carmel to Salinas will be on display, ranging from the "100 percent organic" to the "sculpture accented succulent garden." Host gardens are made by certified graduates of the Monterey Bay Master Gardeners' program. [AS]

10am to 4pm. $12/advance, $15/on tour day. Tickets can be found at area garden shops including Brinton's in Carmel, Searles Art Supply and Drought Resistant Nursery in Monterey, Pacific Grove Floral, Bokay and Graeber Nurseries in Salinas. 661-0272.

Swing Yer Pardner
HOEDOWN FOR HOUSING BENEFIT Interim, Inc., makes things happen for local adults with severe mental illnesses--and 23,000 adults and children are estimated to be mentally ill in the county. The nonprofit group oversees a myriad of programs, ranging from treatment programs for the mentally ill who are drug or alcohol abusers to providing transitional housing and counseling. Most recently, Interim has remodeled old military housing on Fort Ord and turned it into the program's first permanent housing with a built-in support system--designed to be affordable living spaces to let those with psychiatric disabilities live in dignity and still have help from nearby counselors and a resident nurse. Congressman Sam Farr chairs tonight's country-themed dance to raise money for Interim's programs, and attendees have the chance to boost the kitty by bidding on items like a week's trip to Maui and spa treatments at Pebble Beach. $75 includes dinner, tunes from the Cachagua Playboys, and the opportunity to go all out in Western attire. And it's for a really good cause. [BW]

Silent auction begins at 6pm, barbecue starts at 7:30pm, followed by dancing. Monterey Marriott Hotel Ballroom, 350 Calle Principal, Monterey. Advance ticket sales only, $75/person, $750/table of 10. Drinks for purchase. 649-4522.

Lettuce, Aged to Perfection
HEIRLOOM LETTUCE CELEBRATION No, heirloom lettuce is not the kind of lettuce that has been passed down through your family for a trillion bazillion generations and is now a rotting glob of vegetable that has a so-called "sentimental value." However, the whole passing down through the generations bit is not far from the truth. Heirloom lettuce, or any heirloom produce for that matter, is the latest in agricultural technology: a fruit or vegetable that has been cultivated for at least 50 years and subsequently becomes capable of reproducing a seed of itself almost perfectly. Earthbound Farms is showing off 14 varieties of heirloom lettuce today. To celebrate, there will be lots of gourmet food, wine, a silent auction, and an Heirloom Lettuce Tour to boot. Who knew that 50-year-old lettuce could be so exciting? [NP]

4-7pm. Earthbound Farm's Farm Stand, 7250 Carmel Valley Rd., Carmel Valley. $30. 625-6219.

Summer's Swan Song
SECOND ANNUAL SUMMER'S END CONCERT For some people, the summer means catching up on soaps, working on tans or trying to learn how to body board. For Magnus Toren and the folks at the Henry Miller Library, the summer was spent securing some of the finest and most eclectic performances in the county. This summer, the library hosted the inimitable John Doe, songwriter Dan Hicks, the West Coast Poetry Slam and the Modern Nomad Festival. To make sure next summer has the same top-notch entertainment, the library is throwing a fundraiser featuring live music by Boston songwriter Ellis Paul, Santa Cruz funk rockers Big Rain, modern rockers Vera, Santa Barbara's Foamscape and Big Sur's very own Living Drums. [ST]

1:30pm-10pm. Henry Miller Library, 29 miles south of Carmel on Highway 1, Big Sur. $10-$15. 667-2574.

sunday 9|7

Paradise And Castles By The Sea
SAND CASTLE CONTEST One man's castle is another one's pile of sand...or something like that. At the 42nd annual Great Sand Castle Contest at Carmel Beach, budding architects can build either--sand castles or sand slums. Or, for those sculptors who don't prefer sand as a medium, just admire the spectacle. This year's event, called "100 Years in Paradise" is fittingly co-sponsored by the American Institute of Architects-Monterey Bay Chapter and the city of Carmel-by-the-Sea. Note to would-be builders: It's a family event. Make sure designs are appropriate. This means no nekkid mermaids. We think. [JL]

Registration and building begins at 7am. Judging starts at 1pm. Carmel Beach, south of 10th Ave. Free. 620-2020.

Start Your Engines
AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES EVENT Have you got the need for speed? Every year since 1923, millions of spectators from around the globe witness the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a grueling 24-hour event beginning in the Sarthe region of France. This test of speed and skill is considered one of the most prestigious in all of automobile racing. Now, the world-famous name and rules have been taken on in the US to form the American Le Mans Series, which has been a highly popular racing series since its formation in 1999. Four classes of American Le Mans Series sports cars will compete in a two-hour and 45-minute race down the unique track of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, including the famed "corkscrew." With 48 Ferraris, Vipers, Corvettes, and Lamborghinis zooming past at average speeds of over 90 mph down one of the most demanding tracks in the US, it's a setup for one intense day of cars, high velocities, and the insane combination of both. [NP]

7am-6pm. Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, off Highway 68 between Monterey and Salinas, Monterey. $45. Tickets available at www.laguna-seca.com or by calling 1-800-327-7322.

Big Sur Beats

RHYTHM ROMP REVIVAL Even though Big Sur is just a few miles down Highway 1, there are some Peninsula dwellers who only make it down to the sacred land when visitors come to town. This weekend, let a little Big Sur come to you when Doc's is transformed into an earthy dancer's paradise during a benefit for the Annual Big Sur Drum and Dance Festival. The Living Drums, The Gypsy Spirit Dancers, The Liberty Fire Dancers and others will be drumming (yikes!) up support for the special event. [ST]

4pm-1:30am. Doc Rickett's Lab, Franklin Street between Alvarado and Tyler, Monterey. $10. 649-4241.