From Register Staff

'Romance

From Register Staff

When you walk into Michele Mitcavish's glass studio, you are greeted with colors, creativity and Kiska, her pet greyhound. In her Napa studio, Mitcavish teaches a range of classes that include beading, fused glass, stained glass and screen printing on glass.

Celebrating the rebuilding of hurricane-ravaged New Orleans, the 13th annual Napa Valley Mustard Festival kicks off this weekend under the banner of "Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler" for the traditional launch event, "Mustard Magic."

Napa High's thoroughly entertaining version of "Arsenic and Old Lace," will continue for three more performances this weekend with performances Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.

Napa's community theater, Dreamweavers, has a new motto: "Beloved plays performed by your neighbors." With that as guiding principle, Dreamweavers' new leadership has announced its lineup of plays for the 2006 season.

One of the most elegant interpreters of the Great American Songbook performs at the Napa Valley Opera House Feb. 4, when Andrea Marcovicci presents her new show, "Andrea Sings Astaire. " Accompanying Andrea during her 8 p.m. performance will be musical director Shelly Markham on piano and Daniel Fabricant on bass. Marcovicci, a popular performer at the Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel in New York City, has been called "the greatest cabaret star of her generation" by the International Herald Tribune.

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A VOENA CHRISTMAS -- VOENA, Voices of Eve 'N Angels, is the internationally acclaimed, multi-ethnic children's choir that combines inventive a cappella vocal arrangements with percussion, dance and theatrical elements. A joy for the eyes, ears and heart, and one you won't want to miss. Dec. 3 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 4 at 3 p.m. at Copia. $25 general/$22.50 member. Info, 259-1600.

"What is truth?" Pontius Pilate raised this famous biblical query when Jesus was on trial.

NEW YORK -- Jehovah's Witnesses are renowned for teaching that Jesus is not God and that the world as we know it will soon end. But another unusual belief causes even more entanglements -- namely, that God forbids blood transfusions even when patients' lives are at stake.

FRESHMEN

Unitarians ask

Kathy Dennett was searching for an inspired birthday gift when she decided to draw on an idea from her birthplace in Pennsylvania: She painted a variation on a hex sign, those forms of American art popular in Pennsylvania Dutch Country.

Education

Women who want to get in shape and are tired of trying to work out on their own or going to the gym now have a new opportunity with an outdoor fitness program called Napa Valley Adventure Boot Camp. This four-week, early morning camp approach gives women a chance to get a jump start on their day in a challenging, energizing outdoor environment through exercise. It is designed to help women achieve fitness goals through fitness instruction, nutritional counseling and motivational training.

Register Recipe

Undaunted by floodwaters that swept through their restaurant twice in less than four years, partners Sean Pramuk and Giovanni Guerrera are once again dispensing tasty Italian fare that has made their business one of downtown Napa's favorite dining destinations.

Pink salt from the Himalayan Mountains. Goat's milk ice cream from Sonoma County. Super-antioxidant green tea from Japan. Pesto made from a Salvadorean orchid. Butter toffee from wine country.

HYDE PARK, N.Y. -- Showing affection can include searching for the perfect sweet treat for your loved one. Although a vow to eat more healthfully is often among our New Year resolutions, the temptations of being given a box of chocolates can wreak havoc on the best of intentions.

Since it's a given by now that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, one that gives everyone the best start, the next subject to consider is the tasty one: what to have for breakfast.

WILTON, Conn. -- Super specials to feed hungry guests may be needed at short notice on a variety of occasions, from national spectaculars to informal parties.

Upvalley restaurants

The way kitchens are going, this most-used family room has everything but a couch.

We recently attended the 2006 International Builders' Show in Orlando, Fla., where more than 1,600 exhibitors, dealing in more than 300 product categories, displayed their wares to an estimated 100,000 curious attendees.

NEW MARKET, Va. -- A garden tool growing more popular by the season doesn't have a handle, won't belch smoke, isn't noisy and leaves no dirt on your hands. It's a computer and it's changing the way we do our planting and harvesting.

Jack Tognetti didn't set out to become a two-term president of the Napa Valley Camellia Society. Similar to the tight green camellia buds that burst into saucers of color, Tognetti's relationship with the 16-year-old Napa Valley Camellia Society simply blossomed.

n There are 80 different species of camellias and over 3,500 varieties. There are variations in form, size, texture and shape of petals. While horticulturists experiment with developing a consistent yellow camellia, most are red, white and pink in varying shades. A few camellia varieties have scent.

Residents of Vallejo, Sarah Stowers and Michael Walcker, were married Dec. 10, 2005, in a ceremony at the Forever Grand wedding chapel at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Queen of the Valley

Residents of Napa, Ed and Bev Hendrickson celebrated 40 years of marriage on Jan. 22, 2006, with a family dinner at Jonesy's Famous Steak House. 37 people attended the celebration, complete with cake and balloons.

ALVARADO HERNANDEZ-TORRES ALVAREZ -- Jose Aaron Alvarado Hernandez, 24, Spring Mountain Road, St. Helena, to Virginia Torres Alvarez, 20, Spring Mountain Road, St. Helena.

BARAJAS -- Alejandra Barajas vs. Miguel Barajas, Jan. 18, 2006

Residents of Napa, Ying Ying Wu and Sorel Klein, were married Dec. 23, 2005, at the Napa County Clerk Recorder's Office. The couple then spent 10 days in Mazatlan, Mexico, on their honeymoon.

Residents of Napa, Sara Dawn Kvidahl and Joseph Anthony Schmitz are excited to announce their engagement with plans to marry June 24, 2006, in St. Helena.

Katie Fontana of Sacramento and Scott Abbott of Los Angeles, announce their engagement with plans to marry July 8, 2006, at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Sacramento.

A top notch soloist, a solid orchestral performance and accessible programming greeted Sunday afternoon concert-goers at the Napa Valley Symphony's latest subscription offering.

Chinese acrobatics is a tradition unfettered by time. The art dates back more than 2,000 years in China and on Saturday, the Napa Valley Opera House treated audiences from near and far to a fantastic demonstration in the art of acrobatics on a level rarely witnessed.