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Night Howl
By Karen Reardanz

A. Ferrucci Falling Down: Darryl Ferrucci's giant downtown mural says goodbye on Saturday afternoon. Moving Art: A recent downtown Santa Cruz artistic statement comes down DON'T BE ALARMED when you see a giant black hole in downtown Santa Cruz in the days to come. It's a sight that's become second nature, but now Darryl Ferrucci's vibrantly colored mural is coming down. Ferrucci's giant art--a structure that weighs in at close to 500 pounds--has its final hurrah Saturday afternoon on the corner of Lincoln and Pacific streets downtown. Ferrucci and a team of plenty will begin the massive mural take-down with great care beginning at 4:30pm. Though the mural--a surreal, bright-red work featuring airborne dancers from Moving & Storage Performance Company/Crash Burn & Die Dance Company--has become a visual staple of downtown Santa Cruz's landscape, the time is up for Ferrucci's work. First hoisted onto the wall for last winter's First Night Santa Cruz festivities, the project may have been the artist's brainchild, but it was definitely also a symbol of community spirit. "If it weren't for the generosity of local businesses and local individuals, the mural wouldn't be there," Ferrucci says. "It's very gratifying to know that the community takes such an interest in art." Financially sponsored in part by the Santa Cruz Redevelopment Agency and the Cultural Council, the rest of the dough was put up by a host of businesses including Bay Photo, Post Digital and Grade A Graphics. But individual benefactors also made the mural a reality, a trend Ferrucci hopes will continue and tries to make more attractive as he launches into future artistic ventures. "I've come up with a reward idea for fundraising," he says. "I've digitally reproduced the downtown mural into really stunning prints that people will receive for donating money to future projects." These future projects include a combination visual and choreographic venture due later this year. One thing is for sure--the mural has attracted considerable attention to its creator, as well as the arts community. "Apparently it's been a successful project," Ferrucci says. "But it's time for it to come down. This mural has had six months of glory, and I'd really like to do a new one." For more info on the Ferrucci tip, tune into KUSP, 88.9FM, at noon on July 22, and you can cheer on the removal team downtown on Saturday. To find out more about making donations to future Ferrucci projects, write to Darryl Ferrucci Mural Project, P.O. Box 1208, Santa Cruz, 95061. Frog Legs Proving once again that Santa Cruz is fertile arts ground even on the international level, locals Emily Lipoma and Briana Michaud have struck cinematic gold with their new film Frog and Wombat. The two women have found a distributor for their kids' adventure film. Showcase Entertainment will distribute the film, dubbed "Nancy Drew meets Rear Window," internationally. Meanwhile, those of us who live in SC won't have to wait--the film opens for a week-long run in Santa Cruz on Thursday at Nickelodeon. FutureThink George Brooks, Terry Riley and Krishna Bhatt perform a Indian-flavored jazz on Saturday, Aug. 1, at the Society of Abidance in Truth. ... Also on Aug. 1, the San Francisco and Santa Cruz slam teams compete at the Ugly Mug. ... And again on Aug. 1, the Central California Film Archive screens the locally filmed Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm at the Nickelodeon. ... The Cabrillo Music Festival kicks off at the SC Civic on Aug. 3. ... The National Writers Union hosts Kim Nelson and other California poets at Bookshop Santa Cruz on Aug. 11. [ Santa Cruz Week | MetroActive Central | Archives ]