Holly
Near translates her musical art into activism
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By DAN TAYLOR
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Anyone who has followed the career of Northern California
singer and songwriter Holly Near won't be surprised
to discover her Web site has a section titled "Arts
and Activism."
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She opens it with a short statement which sums up her philosophy
succinctly: "I do not separate my music from my heart,
nor do I separate my ideas from my daily life."
So those who go to see Near and others in the "Women
Against War: A Vision for Peace" performance Wednesday
at Burbank Center for the Arts certainly can expect to see
a woman against war -- more than one. Ferron, Linda Tillery
and the Dance Brigade also perform.
"I think it'll be an exciting show," Near said
by cell phone while driving back from Southern California
last week. Near, 53, who grew up in Potter Valley, has been
based in the Bay Area since the early '70s.
The rapid pace of events in Iraq doesn't change the agenda
of "Women Against War" at all, Near said.
"It doesn't change just because there's a war in Iraq
or a war somewhere else," Near said. "We bully other
countries economically and militarily. That isn't new. When
you see an adult abusing a child, you intervene."
Music with a message, advocating diplomacy and negotiation
instead of violence, is her chosen form of intervention. President
Bush may not be listening, but if enough others do, it may
make a difference.
"So, for the past 25 years, I've been trying to deal
with that. This is what I do. I've been very consistent. I
haven't been a cause-hopper, going from one thing to another,
according to the fad," Near said.
Is she just preaching to the choir? "I love to sing
to the choir," she said with a laugh, "because the
choir is out doing good work. I've always tried to help ensure
and encourage people working for social change. That's where
I belong."
"Women Against War" starts at 7 p.m. Wednesday
at Burbank Center, 50 Mark West Springs Road, north of Santa
Rosa, and at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel
Ave., Santa Cruz. Admission: $25. Information: Burbank, 546-3600;
Rio, (831) 429-1812.
Jack Stuppin packed up and shipped off three of his paintings
to Washington last week to the office of the new National
Endowment for the Arts chairman, Sonoma County poet Dana Gioia,
appointed by President Bush.
"I hesitate in calling attention to this," Stuppin
joked, "because people will think I'm a Republican."
Stuppin led the charge to revive and restage local playwright
Pauline Pfandler's historical play "Chutzpah," about
radical Jewish chicken ranchers in Petaluma during the 1930s.
The show just closed a run in San Francisco.
The paintings include two large oil paintings, "Sunflowers
II" and "Quail Hill, Freestone," and a smaller
acrylic, "Valley Ford, Estero." Soon they'll hang
in NEA headquarters.
"It kind of gives me bragging rights," Stuppin
said.
You can reach Entertainment Editor Dan Taylor at 521-5243
or dtaylor@pressdemocrat.com.
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