Ashley Wheater, ballet master and assistant to the artistic director of the San Francisco Ballet, will be on hand into introduce this week’s Friday Night Flick at Copia.

“The Company,” directed by Robert Altman, is an inside look at the world of ballet; the director follows the stories of dancers from the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago as they cope with the demands of their art, and their lives grow impossibly close.

Wheater was trained at the Royal Ballet School and, as a young dancer, was cast in productions at the Royal Opera House, including Rudolf Nureyev’s “Nutcracker.” At the age of 13, he worked on the world premiere of Benjamin Britten’s “Death in Venice” and performed in it throughout England and Europe. He also performed “Marguerite and Armand” with Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn at the London Coliseum.

He joined London Festival Ballet on the advice of Nureyev, where he danced in many works including “Romeo & Juliet,” “The Sleeping Beauty,” “Swan Lake,” “Etudes” and “Sphinx.”

In 1982, he joined the Australian Ballet, and three years later moved to the Joffrey Ballet. In 1989 he joined San Francisco Ballet, dancing lead roles in nearly all of the company’s full-length productions. In 1996 Wheater ended his dancing career after suffering a major neck injury.

He assumed the role of ballet master with San Francisco Ballet in 1996 and was named assistant to the artistic director in 2002. His responsibilities include teaching company classes, rehearsing ballets and coaching both principal dancers and soloists in various roles. Wheater continues to perform principal character roles with the company, including Drosselmeyer in Tomasson’s current production of “Nutcracker” and Kitri’s father in Tomasson/Possokhov’s “Don Quixote.”

“The Company” is shown Friday 8 p.m. Tickets are $7 ($6 for Copia members). It’s rated PG-13 for brief strong language, some nudity and sexual content.

“Vinetvm et Caelvm,” (vineyard and sky), vineyard paintings by Ira Yeager opens Friday at Copia with a preview reception from 5:30- p.m. The show will be on display through Oct. 21.

Yeager is one of the most celebrated artists painting in the Napa Valley. He has lived and worked in exotic locations around the world, immersing himself in the local culture and always combining his life with his art. Mirroring the desires of the 18th century aristocracy he has portrayed with such affection, Ira has sought the simple beauty of country living as a respite from the strains of the city. In these latest works depicting the landscapes surrounding his studio here in the heart of wine country, he records his own translocation and captures the charm that has lured so many others.

 “3x3,” works by nine artists from three counties, Napa, Solano and Sonoma, opens Saturday at the di Rosa Preserve: Art & Nature with a reception from 6-8 p.m. This exhibition offers a fresh look at new work from this area by both lesser-known artists and nationally recognized artists not necessarily associated with the region. The artists include Lewis deSoto, Rob Keller and Clifford Rainey of Napa County; Terry Berlier, Michael S. Moore and the team of Jeanne C. Finley and John Muse of Solano County; and Jessica Martin, John Sappington and Victoria Wagner of Sonoma County.

A panel discussion by the artists takes place Aug. 9 at  7 p.m. at the Gatehouse Gallery. Tickets are $10, $5 for di Rosa members.

The di Rosa Preserve is at 5200 Carneros Highway in Napa. Drop in visitors are welcome at the Gatehouse Gallery Tuesday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. On Saturday, Gatehouse Gallery is open with a tour. Call 226-5991 ext. 25 for information about tours of the Preserve.

 Artists Nancy Willis and Helen Wilson conduct a workshop “Below the Painted Surface” Friday through Sunday at Nimbus Arts in St. Helena. This painting workshop is geared for working artists or beginning painters who want to immerse themselves in a weekend of painting. Combining good food, drink and discourse as a healthy part of engaged art making, the instructors will lead you through a painting obstacle course. From beginning a painting conceptually to finding solutions to painting problems, this workshop will help prepare artists for the unexpected or that which they cannot control.

Participating artists will discover more about their own decision-making process and how to expand their technical repertoire and approaches. Beginning artists will get a comprehensive introduction into art making. Working artists will see their work in new and interesting ways. With emphasis on large fast work and concentrated painting time this will be fun, rigorous and intoxicating.

The weekend begins with a kickoff introduction and appetizer of what is to come on Friday night, 5-8 p.m. Saturday the painting gymnastics begin bright and early at 9 a.m. and continue after lunch until 5 p.m. The painting continues Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and ends with a critique.

The $375 price includes instruction, Friday night wine and hors d’oeuvres, breakfast and lunch on Saturday and Sunday and most painting supplies.

Both artists have known the pain and pleasure of receiving their MFA’s from San Francisco Art Institute in 2005. Willis teaches drawing and painting at the Napa Valley College and has started painting tours to France for artists. Her recent exhibit “A Sense of Place” at Sundance featured work with themes of intimacy and visibility. She can be found looking to stir things up in and out of her studio in St. Helena.

Wilson teaches art history and drawing in San Diego. After losing her home/studio in the San Diego fires she is “free” to fan the flames of creative thinking. Her work smolders with the ideas of memory and that we are all born with an imprint of wisdom.

Nimbus Arts is at 3111 St. Helena Highway, # 1B St. Helena. For information, call 963-5278 or e-mail info@nimbusarts.org

Marshall Knight, Justin-Siena class of 2005, is among 15 UCLA undergraduates accepted into the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, to work on a bachelor’s degree in film, TV and digital media. The school is ranked number one nationally by Princeton Review for film and media industry programs and received 4,000 undergraduate and graduate applications. In 2006, Marshall interned at Film and Music Entertainment, Inc. and is currently working on a movie script and a novel. He is a member of the UCLA varsity rowing team.

 

Solano College Theatre holds auditions for its upcoming production of Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors,” directed by Julian Lopez-Morilla Aug. 20 and 21 from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. at the Harbor Theatre, 720 Main St., in Suisun. Callbacks will be Aug. 22 from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. All roles are available and all ethnicities are welcome. Several roles are open to both genders. Those auditioning should prepare a 16-20 line speech from Shakespeare, preferably in verse. Please call the Solano College Theatre production office at 864-7199 to schedule an audition appointment.

Rehearsals for “The Comedy of Errors” begin Sept. 4, 2007. Performances begin Oct. 11 and run through Oct. 28 at the Harbor Theatre. To schedule an audition appointment, call 864-7199.