InBerkeley

REI store on San Pablo Avenue

Four people were sent to local hospitals this afternoon after complaining of nausea, headaches, and shortness of breath while at the REI store on San Pablo Avenue.

Customers and employees were forced to evacuate while the Berkeley Fire Department’s hazardous materials team investigated, according to the Oakland Tribune.

“Police were searching for a man who employees say may have left a container inside a backpack in the store,” according to the newspaper.

UPDATE: The store reopened around 4 pm.

“Berkeley fire Duty Chief Malcolm Greene said the substance, possibly pepper spray or bear spray, may have been inside a customer’s backpack that was checked in at the front counter,” according to the newspaper.

“One of the employees may have thrown the bag against the wall, and it gave out a little squirt,” Greene said.

After people began coughing, the man who owned the bag wrestled it away from an employee and left, Greene said. The man shops there often and has bought bear spray from the store in the past, Greene said.

Berkeley police searched for the man but did not find him.

Emergencies, General

Brandy Collazo stars as Peter Pan

The stage of the Ashby Theater at the corner of Ashby and Martin Luther King has been transformed into a magical Neverland complete with pirate ship, gangplank, and aerial swings that loft those familiar characters, Wendy and Peter Pan, high up into the air.

For the past few weeks, a new theater company, Berkeley Playhouse, has been selling out its shows of the story penned by J.M. Barrie.  With its high production values, snazzy sets, and a versatile and talented cast, Berkeley Playhouse’s production of Peter Pan is suddenly a hot ticket.

It’s only the fledgling theater company’s fourth show, but its success shows that the East Bay was ready to embrace a professional theatrical group that produces plays for children,

The mastermind behind Berkeley Playhouse is Elizabeth McKoy, 45, who moved to Berkeley from Seattle five years ago with her husband Tim Choate and their children. McKoy, a longtime performer and a teacher at the Seattle Children’s Theater, came to the East Bay with a dream to create a vibrant children’s theater program.

But even before she made the move, McKoy found herself immersed in the tribulations of local theater.

McKoy and Choate held some conversations with developer Patrick Kennedy about building a new theater in his Gaia building on Allston Way. But McKoy soon discovered that the venerable Julia Morgan Theater on College Avenue was just four weeks away from foreclosure. Suddenly the couple was faced with the dilemma of saving an historic theater or pursuing the dream of a new facility.

The pair opted to step in and make a large contribution that enabled the Julia Morgan theater to pay off its debts. Choate joined the board and helped upgrade and restore the building.

In the meantime, McKoy started the Imagination Players, a children’s theater company. In the beginning, when the core of the company was her two children and their close friends, McKoy staged classes and performances in the living room of her Berkeley house. The company soon grew, however, and McKoy moved productions to the Ashby Stage, home of the Shotgun Players. Kimberly Dooley, the wife of Shotgun’s artistic director Patrick Dooley, started to teach and direct plays for the Imagination Players, along with McKoy and other teachers.

Within a few years, McKoy had put the pieces in place to start Berkeley Playhouse, which stages professional productions for children, holds numerous classes ranging from acting to dancing to audition rehearsal for children, and also teaches musical theater to adults. The organization also goes performs in the Berkeley public schools.

The Julia Morgan Theater and Berkeley Playhouse officially merged in July, and will put on its first official production in the late fall,  when it presents the Wizard of Oz. The new organization recently extended the stage to bring performers closer to the audience and have plans to put in a new sound and lighting system.

Captain Hook (Gabriel Grilli) and pirates

Peter Pan will be performed at the Ashby Stage until August 23.

Art

For tomato lovers everywhere, here’s a unique opportunity to sample about 35 different varieties of love apples (aka, tomatoes) in one place for free at the Tuesday Berkeley Farmers’ Market (Derby St. at MLK, Jr. Way) on August 11 from 14:00 – 19:00.

Among the varieties that will be offered are: Great White, Black Prince, Marvel Stripe, Cherokee Purple, Brandywine, Sun Gold, Sweet One Hundred, Green Zebra, Yellow Pear, Sweet Gold, Early Girl, Lemon Boy, Black Plum, Celebrity, Ace, Golden Jubilee, Red Pear, Royal Flush, Golden Pear, Roma, Evergreen, Shady Lady, Beefsteak, Sweet Millions, Sausage, Thesalonika, Supertasty, Miracle Sweet, Ivory Pear, Black Krim, Persimmon Orange, Arkansas Traveller, Delicious, Mister Stripey and more.

Now, can someone please tell me where I can find the kind of acidy New Jersey beefsteak tomatoes I used to enjoy in my childhood?

A program of the Ecology Center since 1987, the Berkeley Farmers’ Markets offer a wide range of mostly organic produce and healthy, locally-produced foods. Together with educational events, cooking demonstrations and live music, these award-winning markets serve as a central meeting place for members of our diverse and vibrant community.

For More Information: (510) 548-3333, or visit www.ecologycenter.org.

General