Around Town

Alyson Cambridge to perform on June 30. Photo courtesy the Chicago Lyric Opera

Sun Valley in the spotlight

In advance of her appearance at the Sun Valley Summer Spectacular on June 30, superstar songstress Alyson Cambridge is shooting a number of television ads to promote the event from New York's Central Park.

The international diva will appear under the direction of Craig Jessop, former director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, with the American Festival Chorus and Orchestra. It is slated to be a patriotic evening of pop and arias. Tickets for the performance start at $29 and can be found at www.sunvalley.com.

There will be Diva and Diamonds party prior. Tickets start at $125 and include concert the following night at the Sun Valley Pavilion. The party has a hosted bar, light fare and live music. For more information, contact the Sun Valley Opera at 726-0991 or info@sunvalleyopera.com.

Wildflower walks begin this week

The Sawtooth Botanical Garden is offering a series of 10 Thursday Wildflower Walks to explore native flora.

The walks begin Thursday, May 31, and continue through Aug. 2. The first walk will take place on the Wood River Land Trust's Sheep Bridge Preserve, which abuts the Big Wood River and Camas Creek. The locations are full of lupine and larkspur and more, so bring a camera, water, sunscreen and lunch, but leave dogs at home.

Meet at the Sawtooth Botanical Garden, 11 Gimlet Road, south of Ketchum. The walks run from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Walks are $10 for members and $15 for nonmembers.

Events of note at the Community Library

Author Kim Barnes, who wrote the PEN USA Award for "A Country Called Home," will appear at the Community Library in Ketchum to discuss her latest work, "In the Kingdom of Men," on Thursday, May 31, at 6 p.m.

The new book is a novel about a young woman who leaves the dusty farmland of 1960s Oklahoma to follow her husband to the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, where she finds a world of wealth, glamour, American privilege and corruption.

On Thursday, June 5, at 6 p.m., the library will screen "My Reincarnation." Documentarian Jennifer Fox chronicles the story of a high Tibetan Buddhist master and his Western-born son, who breaks away from his father's tradition to embrace the modern world. Never before has a high Tibetan master allowed such complete access to his private life. Fox distills a decades-long drama into a universal story about love, transformation and destiny.

Both events are free.

Community School invites public to art project

The annual Intolerance Project Gallery Walk will take place today, May 30, from 4-5:30 p.m. at the Arthouse, 203 W. Croy St. in Hailey.

Seventh-grade students present discoveries about national and global intolerance in today's world. Artwork will be open to the public and students will discuss their work and explain the significance of symbols, colors and textures to inquisitive guests.

Students are accepting donations for their art, and the money will be used for causes that best fit their theme. In the past, the Community School has raised more than $1,400 for a school for girls in Afghanistan, supported an integrated peace project in the Middle East, donated $8,000 to a free school system in Haiti and provided $1,500 for a home for the mentally challenged in Kansas.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Joel Villinsky at 622-3955, ext. 141.

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.