for the ARTS record
"WineDown" For the first time ever, the Nantucket Wine Festival is hosting a carefree champagne brunch to cap off the four day wine and food fete. Contrary to what was reported in this Arts section last week, tickets are still available for this seaside "winedown." (It is the Grand Dame Champagne brunch that has sold out.) "For people who have been through the mill, there is something relaxing about having your champagne by the water," said NWF President and founder Denis Toner. David Daniels of Topper's and Neil Hudson of Brant Point Grill will prepare a bountiful buffet brunch to complement the champagne, bloody Mary bar and the jazztastic stylings of our very own Steve Sheppard and the Shep Cats. Winedown Brunch at the White Elephant. When: Sunday, May 20, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Cost: $75 For tickets, or for more information,

Sounds like: Bon Jovi + Sister Hazel. Hear for your self at www.johnnyvance.com. When: Friday and Saturday, April 13 and 14, 10 p.m. - 1 a.m. Where: Chicken Box

call 228-1128.

Confessions of a summer-to-year-rounder Known affectionately by me as "Mister Wilson" (to my Dennis the Menace), Daniel Drake will speak at the NHA's "Food for Thought" series on making the switch with his better half, Judith, from well-heeled summer resident to a man who now has no snow plow service on his unpaved road. I say this because I really believe, despite Mr. Wilson's career in America, he has always been a Nantucketer at heart, and even preserved his family's home, which used to be a summer camp, down to the last exposed ceiling beam. When: Thursday, April 12, noon - 1 p.m. Where: Nantucket Historical Association

(Discovery Room), 13 Broad Street Cost: Free For more information, please call 228-1894.

Walk out of Worry On Friday, April 13, the Summer Street Church presents a dinner with Deb Hogan, a wife, home-schooling mom, vocalist and founder of "Walk out of Worry Ministries." Hogan will share her testimony on Friday night, followed by a light breakfast with praise and worship, led by Hogan. The program is part of the church's Women Rejoice '07 celebration, and Hogan will focus on sharing "how the Lord led her from a life plagued by anxiety into a life full of His peace and contentment."

When: (Dinner) Friday, April 13, 6 p.m.;

(Morning workshop) Saturday, April 14, 8:30 p.m. Where: 1 Summer Street Church, Cost: Free, donations accepted Pre-register by contacting

Ruth Blount at 228-2753.

Pinter on Nantucket This week, Theatre Workshop of Nantucket stages its performance of "The Dumb Waiter" along with another of Pinter's one-acts, "A Kind of Alaska."

Written in 1957, "The Dumb Waiter" focuses on two hit men, one older (Ben) and one younger (Gus). They are thrown together in a basement by the powers that-be to await the orders on their hit. Chris Witte plays Ben, and Ciaran Byrne fills Gus' shoes. "Pinter slipped out of his own style to write 'A Kind of Alaska,' and that's what intrigued me," said Byrne of the one-act he chose to complement "The Dumb Waiter" Pinter based "A Kind of Alaska" on the case studies of Oliver Sacks. Written in 1982, it is the only one of Pinter's works that credits any source other than his own imagination, making it something of an anomaly. The story follows a woman suffering from Encephalitis lethargica, who wakes to find that she has only retained memories of her childhood, and that her sister and her sister's husband have been taking care of her for three decades. It is, at its core, the story about transitioning from one state of consciousness to the next. When: Through April 14; Wed. - Sat., 8 p.m.; Where: United Methodist Church (upstairs) Cost: $15 For more information, please call 228-4305.

What are you doing with the kids during Spring Break? The Nantucket Historical Association is again offering free, historically based arts classes at the 1800 house from Monday, April 16 through Friday, April 20. Thanks to a grant from the Nantucket Golf Club Foundation, the classes not only keep kids ages 8 to 12 entertained from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., they also teach little Nantucketers about island history through its arts and crafts. Interested parents should pre-register their kids by contacting Julie Kever at 228-1894. The classes are as follows:

Monday, April 16 - Architecture Models. Students will work with preservationist Pat Butler and build their own architectural models.

Tuesday, April 17 - Primitive Folk-Art Painting. Students will work with artists Charles and Jan Munro, the husband-and-wife team who painted the mural in the Whaling Museum's Discovery room.

Wednesday, April 18 - Creative Drawing. Renowned Nantucket artist and carver Nancy Chase teaches this special class in drawing Nantucket scenes with charcoal and colored pencils.

Thursday, April 19 - Paint and Decorate a Birdhouse. Local artists will teach students how to paint and decorate their own wooden birdhouse.

Friday, April 20 - Decoupaging a Shaker- style box. Mary Lacoursiere and Betsey Braun will teach students how to decoupage a Shaker-style box. Materials will be supplied, but feel free to bring some of your favorite small photos or papers for inclusion in your design.

Who's playing? The Johnny Vance Band