Theater: Filling the Gap Pleasant Hill Community Theatre keeps drama alive. Food: The Last Act LocoMotive to close its doors.   Filling the Gap Pleasant Hill Community Theatre keeps drama alive. BY SHARLEEN NELSON With a surplus of Eugene-area theaters vying for patrons, one might think that there wouldn't be room for one more. But that's not a problem for a non-profit group in Pleasant Hill — because it's all about the kids. According to Mike Moskovitz, who serves as vice-president on the five-member volunteer Pleasant Hill Community Theatre Board, the goal is to provide a much-needed venue for youth in Pleasant Hill and its surrounding area to participate, learn, and explore dance and theater arts. "Our goal is to actively engage area youth in a range of activities," Moskovitz says. "We're extremely excited to be able to put this together." The organization has assembled a group of directors, instructors and volunteers to guide the theater's programs and activities that will kick off later this month with a jazz and tap dance clinic, followed by theater workshops and a Broadway musical to be performed by local high school students. Additionally, plans are in the works to expand the program to include a venue for music programs as well as to eventually host kids' theater camps. "The plan is that it will be a place that is available to the entire community for use as a performance venue," Moskovitz says. He explains that the programs offered by the organization will fill a void left by deep budget cuts that have hit particularly hard in rural school districts such as Pleasant Hill, resulting in broad slashing of after-school and extracurricular activities. For many school districts, even sports-related activities took a hit, forcing parents and students to resort to fundraising. So it was no surprise when the high school's drama department was cut entirely. With a gaping hole in the community's available programs for kids, the organization sought out ways to not only benefit the community, but also to get the schools involved in their endeavor. According to Moskovitz, the group decided to approach the local schools for their input and possible involvement and was extremely pleased with the response. "We sent out letters outlining the program to all the schools, and the principals are 100 percent supportive," he says. With the schools on board, the organization hopes to expand the program to meet the needs of both the students and the community. "Our main goal is to work closely with the schools to incorporate their curriculum — to devise some sort of mutual benefit to both the theater and the schools," he says. "We're also looking into developing some sort of program whereby high school kids can receive school credit for their participation." Moskovitz concedes that because not all kids excel at sports, these programs offer children alternative opportunities to get involved, whether it's onstage or behind the scenes painting sets, selling tickets or learning how to operate lighting and sound equipment. "There's something for everyone," he says. Moreover, the group's goal is to be all-inclusive, so if a family in the community can't pay for activity fees, the organization will work closely with them to arrange funding. They also intend to offer scholarships. Meanwhile, the group and volunteers are busy applying the finishing touches to the former Zephyr Way metal shop, which has been converted into a theater with a seating capacity of 200 and portable seats that can easily be removed to transform the audience area into a floor for dance classes. The group has also published a website where people can offer input and comments, as well as volunteer for any number of available jobs, including experienced directors to guide their children's programs. "The response from the community — mainly through the website — has been overwhelming," Moskovitz says. "We're getting two to three positive responses per day from people who are excited and eager to volunteer." For more information, call 988-1195 or visit www.phct.org     The Last Act LocoMotive to close its doors. by Jessica MacMurray Blaine Regulars know that every meal at the LocoMotive ends gracefully. The food in this last act shines: deep, rich caramel pot de creme, a poached Bosc pear, an exquisite dish of Lee's signature lime-coconut ice cream, Oregon Snow. Eitan might bring you a glass of Meursault as a gift to accompany your chocolate terrine, or perhaps he'll visit with you as you finish up, warming your hands around a cup of coffee. This New Year's Eve, that last act will truly be the last. Eitan Zucker and his wife and partner, Lee, announced in September that the restaurant will not open in 2005. The closing is the end of a successful nine-year run for the LocoMotive, whose organic, vegetarian dinners have earned them a loyal following and a place among Eugene's finest restaurants. The Zuckers came to Eugene in 1995 to start a restaurant with their daughter, a UO graduate who loved Eugene. They had traveled the world with a sharp sense of what fine cooking is about and were in a good position to begin a restaurant that appeals to a range of tastes, vegetarian and otherwise. The restaurant opened in January 1996, offering worldly, organic vegetarian food in a market where, at that time, vegetarian food was surprisingly scarce. After a year, their daughter bowed out. "She said it was too hard," Eitan says with a laugh. But the pair remained: Lee at the helm in the kitchen, Eitan in the dining room greeting customers, giving menu and wine advice, and serving as an ambassador of imaginative food. The restaurant is open only for dinner Wednesday through Sunday. But Lee and Eitan are busy all the time — maintaining their website, supplying recipes to inquiring customers, carefully thinking through the menu for the upcoming week. Although cooking vegetarian is at the core of their philosophy, it's not the only defining characteristic. "You can't cater to vegetarians," Eitan says. "You have to cater to people who love food — that's how you bring people in to a restaurant like this." Many a skeptical omnivore has been won over by the menu's staple dish, portobello mushroom with red wine reduction and mashed potatoes. But it is the Zuckers' insistence on quality, organic food prepared with the utmost attention that has brought them a steady line of regulars who border on fanatics. Since their announcement, the phone has been ringing off the hook. The New Year's Eve celebration was booked full within a week. Thanksgiving was just as packed, and business has been booming. Regulars are coming twice a week now, and fans from out of town are making the trip to enjoy one more miraculous carrot soufflé, one more bowl of pecan-chipotle soup, one more salad dressed with Lee's incredible tahini dressing. "We've been here as much as we possibly could over the last few months," says long-time LocoMotive admirer Melissa Davis, who's been requesting recipes from the Zuckers since the restaurant's 1996 beginning. "It will be a sad day when it closes." But even with the thriving business, the Zuckers are looking forward to some time off. They're not sure what's next – perhaps cooking classes, small dinners, a book. Eitan has been collecting e-mail addresses from regulars, and the LocoMotive website will remain up and running after the restaurant's doors are closed. But for now, it's time for a break. "Lee has been here since 8 am from the beginning," Eitan says. "She needs to rest." It's been a great deal of work for both of them, but worth it — mostly because they've proven how successful a community contribution a restaurant like the LocoMotive can be. "You can satisfy all of your foodie cravings without killing animals," Eitan says. The last act for the LocoMotive will be just as graceful. The mushroom will be there, a cannelloni dish, a curry. Eitan will move from table to table, laughing and visiting with his friends, giving wine advice, talking about where each onion and tomato was grown. People are coming to celebrate from California, Washington D.C., and elsewhere to ring in the new year, feast, and thank the Zuckers for nine years of splendid food and good company. We have been nourished, and we loved it.
		Table of Contents | News | Views | Calendar| Film | Music | Culture | Classifieds | Personals | Contact | EW Archive | Advertising Information |