A&E

SEBASTOPOL

Sean HayesAnother Dad Country discovery comes to the Second Story stage on Thursday, Dec. 28. Sean Hayes comes by way of North Carolina and NYC, bringing Irish R&B roots to his diverse material. No cover; doors open at 6pm, music starts at 7pm. Upstairs...

For those who like to keep a well-stocked home bar, it may seem like a no-brainer to include a few special, locally made craft spirits in the mix.  After all, Sonoma County is home to more than a dozen craft distilleries. But I would challenge...

This month’s exhibit at the Upstairs Art Gallery features a collection of oil and acrylic paintings by Willow LaLand, along with the Staircase Smallworks showcase featuring Gen Zorich’s ‘Summertime’ exhibit. Meet the artists on ...

Anyone who has lived close to the ocean knows how its wildness and beauty gets into your bones and how its influence extends into the environment. The spirit of the sea penetrates everything in its path – and for the adventurous lot of winegrowers who farm the rugged West Sonoma Coast, that spirit will be celebrated at the West of West (WOW) Wine Festival on August 2-4 in Sebastopol.  

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle opens in 1996, with the  discovery of the old board game on a sandy beach. When the box is opened, a video game cartridge is inside which just happens to fit the Sony Play Station the teen-aged son has in his bedroom. We then flash forward 20 years, where (echoing the plot points of the The Breakfast Club), four teens end up in detention for various reasons: Spencer, the Wimp (Alex Wolf) is called into the principal’s office for writing a history paper for  Fridge, the Jock (Ser’Darius Blain); Bethany, the Babe (Madison Iseman) is busted for using her cell phone during a test;  and Martha, the Brain (Morgan Turner), talks back to her PE teacher. The foursome discover the Jumanji video game in the school basement, and are magically transformed into the game avatars they select. The wimp becomes  Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson), a muscular, self-effacing “expert” with a “smoldering look.”  The brain develops sex appeal, long, shapely legs, and deadly martial arts skills as Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan) who is clad in a ridiculous,  midriff-baring jungle outfit.  The Jock becomes the wise-cracking, short-statured zoologist named Franklin “Mouse” Finbar (Kevin Hart), and when the babe selected “the curvy genius cartographer” named Dr. Shelly Oberon, she did not envision Jack Black’s body. It takes awhile for the teens to learn to utilize their avatar’s skill sets, but fortunately, the game gives them two extra lives.