The Napa High School choirs, conducted by Travis Rogers and Jamie Butler, present Christmas Concert performances in the Napa District Auditorium on Dec. 10, 13 and 14.

It wouldn’t be the holidays without “The Nutcracker.” This year marks the sixth time the Napa Regional Dance Company will produce Tchaikovsky’s dazzling ballet for local audiences, and the second year it brings its polished performance to the Lincoln Theater in Yountville.

Concert-goers are generally among the more discerning of consumers. They don’t take to buying a pig in a poke.

The Napa Valley Opera House is inviting young Napa singers to take part in “Idol NV,” a county-wide vocal competition beginning Jan. 13.

When Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died in early December of 1791, he left his final masterpiece, the “Requiem,” unfinished.

LOS ANGELES — They’re as unlikely rockers as they are leading men. But Jack Black and Kyle Gass, the portly pair comprising the comedy rock group Tenacious D, are starring together in a film hitting cinemas next week.

“Bobby” — In telling the story of the life and death of Robert F. Kennedy, writer-director Emilio Estevez could have chosen an actor to play him, could have had him hone that famously hard New England accent. Instead, he created 22 fictional characters — disparate figures who might have populated the Ambassador Hotel on June 4, 1968 — and had their stories connect in the ballroom, just as Kennedy was giving his victory speech after winning the California primary and just before he would be assassinated. It’s an innovative approach, and you have to give Estevez credit for that. But he’s crammed in too many characters and too many plot lines. “Bobby” feels rushed and superficial. So many people come and so many people go, and the movie bounces between them all so quickly, it’s impossible to get to know or sympathize with any of them. And when the bullets start flying wildly in the hotel kitchen, it’s hard to care whether any of them make it out alive. Some strong performances do emerge, though. Lindsay Lohan, Sharon Stone, Demi Moore, Laurence Fishburne, William H. Macy and Elijah Wood are among the distractingly starry cast. R for language, drug content and a scene of violence. 111 min. Two stars out of four.

Richard Linklater is channeling Robert Altman — or at least it seems he’s trying to channel Altman — with his meandering, intertwined plot lines about the horrors of the fast food industry in “Fast Food Nation.”

 Miner Family Winery is offering a $2,000 reward for information leading to the return of its bronze signs and lettering, which were stolen from the winery’s entrance along Silverado Trail in Oakville. The vandalism took place between Nov. 5 and 13. The bronze signage is valued at more than $35,000.

Napa Valley College presents a choral concert, “Mozart to Motown,” Saturday at 8 p.m. in the NVC Theater. 

Pink Floyd T-shirts were popular attire Saturday night at the Lincoln Theater for the only local performance of Paramount’s LaserSpectacular, an entertainment that has been touring for 20 years.

To many adults, opera can be daunting.

Video games aren’t a recent phenomenon, with blipping, beeping, joysticking roots stretching back to the days of the cathode ray tube. Today, games reach all walks of life and culture. We carry them in pockets, play them on cell phones, the backs of car seats, on office computers during work hours and yes, still on our televisions at home.

Loretta and Katey were unfazed by the heated competition, and Ripley simply enjoyed being combed.

Great Lakes, Ill. -- Calvin Ross Gee, a 2006 graduate of Napa High School, has completed his basic training for the Navy at Great Lakes, Ill. He's now attending electronics school in Illinois, specializing in radar operations.

Education

Peaks, valleys and peaks.

When harvest ends in the Napa Valley, you can almost hear a collective sigh from the vineyards: The days and nights of watching the sky, checking the sugar levels of grapes, reading weather forecasts, walking the vineyards — all the endless hours of work all come to a finish, more or less. 

Intending to express the rich agricultural traditions of Carneros, Farm, the new restaurant at the upscale Carneros Inn, is now serving lunch and dinner daily.

Though a staple of many Thanksgiving tables, traditional butternut squash purees often feel like the culinary family’s dull uncle. Against the fat of mashed potatoes, the sweet zip of cranberry sauce and the savory chew of turkey, squash can seem ill-defined and uninteresting.

There’s something a bit smug about turkey.

NEW YORK — When Lucinda Scala Quinn was growing up, her family stuffed its turkey from both ends.

During my first fall in the United States, someone asked me what Indians do for Thanksgiving.

Online and hot line help for holiday cooks

The right cranberry sauce makes a great garnish

Try pumpkin pudding for a delightful dessert

Plan for good plumbing in renovations

Don't procrastinate: Prompt, regular cleaning can save time and money

Seeking an unusual stocking stuffer for a gardener? Try a rare plant

Calistoga's wallpaper professional

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