Eugene weekly., April 21, 2005, Page 15, Image 15

WHAT’S
happening
David Sedaris is car-
rying around a list
of accolades to
make any hopeful
satirist-playwright-
essayist-radio-com-
mentater blanch. Two
Grammy nominations
for Best Spoken Word
Album and Best
Comedy Album; a
“Humorist of the
Year” title from Time
in 2001; the Thurber
Prize for American
Humor; and a host of
bestsellers, including Me Talk
Pretty One Day, which went
straight to the top of the
charts upon its release. He
and his sister, Amy Sedaris
(from Comedy Central’s hyster-
ical Strangers With Candy) col-
laborate on plays under the apt
name “The Talent Family.” But
ultimately, when many people think
of David Sedaris, they think of one
key thing: He used to be an elf. A
Macy’s elf, in green tights. It was
Sedaris’ “SantaLand Diaries,” read
on NPR’s “Morning Edition” and set
on the page in both Barrel Fever and
Holidays on Ice, that introduced the
world to the wry, eloquent voice of the for-
mer New York City house-cleaner. Sedaris’ most
recent book is Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, and an antholo-
gy he edited, Children Playing Before a Statue of Hercules: An Anthology of
Outstanding Stories, is due out in April. Somehow, he’s found the time to turn
up at the Hult Center this weekend. And did we mention he’s incredibly funny?
See Friday Calendar.
Oratrix Productions’ Write Off Tour lands in Sam Bond’s on Monday. Five touring artists
and two local headliners — poets, performance artists, philosophers, storytellers and musi-
cians all — will take the stage for passionate, poetic and political performances. Two of the
performers are co-owners of Oratrix Productions; three are involved with Bent, the Seattle
Queer Writing Institute. SoulChilde, the lone male on the tour, appeared at last year’s
Vancouver Folk Music Festival and Vancouver International Hip Hop Film Festival. Local head-
liner Marietta Bonaventure should be a familiar name to the spoken word fans in town: A
“poetry activist,” she runs the Eugene Poetry Slam, promoting spoken word as a means of
empowerment. With such diverse voices sharing their experiences, this should be a striking
(not to mention entertaining) night. See Monday Calendar.
For three decades, Ashton “Family Man” Barrett has been involved in popular Jamaican music as a producer and as a per-
former. In 1965, Family Man and his brother Carlton, who played homemade instruments, put together their first band, The
Hippy Boys. Four years later The Hippy Boys became The Upsetters and had a massive hit in England with “Return of
Django.” After a British tour and an appearance on “Top of the Pops,” The Upsetters returned to Jamaica, where they
were personally summoned by Bob Marley. It wasn’t long before the brothers Carlton were taken into The Wailers’ fold.
Catch a Fire and Burnin’ were recorded with the original Wailers vocal trio of Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer; after
Tosh and Wailer left, the group was referred to as Bob Marley and The Wailers. Family Man, who embraced the Rastafarian
way of life at an early age (he selected his precocious nickname in his teens), continues The Wailers tradition today, per-
forming classic and new reggae. The Wailers play the McDonald Theatre with opening act deSol. See Monday Calendar.
Spring has sprung, the clouds have finally parted for a bit, and it’s time for the third annual Nearby Nature Egg Walk. Join costumed creatures Bella Butterfly, Frannie
Frog and Myrtle Mallard as they share fun facts, tell stories, and answer questions on special trail hikes in Alton Baker Park. From baby insects from the park pond to the
Oregon Herpetological Society’s live reptiles and amphibians, the Egg Walk celebrates the “eggs-traordinary” array of creatures who hatch from eggs. See Saturday Calendar.
APRIL21, 2005 15