Mondavi to uncork new season

Writer Toni Morrison, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and many other top artists will perform at Mondavi Center during 2004-05.

Theirs are among the shows to be included Wednesday when Mondavi Center announces its season lineup for the year ahead.

The center's third season will include more than 100 performances in music, theater, dance and the spoken word. Among the highlights are the Cleveland Orchestra, Martha Graham Dance Company, the Blind Boys of Alabama, singer Renee Fleming and performer Laurie Anderson.

"New to next season is that we'll have a larger number of multiple-night performances, especially from the dance companies," said Richard Rojo, Mondavi marketing manager, noting that this will allow for more opportunities to view particular acts.

Subscriptions for the 2004-05 season go on sale at 2 p.m. on Wednesday. For tickets, call (530) 754-ARTS or 1-866-754-ARTS, or visit http://www.mondaviarts.org.

Rojo said Mondavi Center will roll out one of the largest international lineups for any university arts center nationwide. And he noted that Mondavi Center will continue to collaborate closely with academic departments on performances in the season ahead.

The 2004-05 season also marks the 50th anniversary of UC Davis Presents, now the Mondavi Center presenting program.

TGFS trams offer transport to Shields Grove

Trams will run throughout the late morning and early afternoon May 12, transporting employees to and from the annual Thank Goodness for Staff picnic. The event takes place in Shields Grove at the west end of the arboretum.

The tram routes include:

• Route 1 -- from the front of Mondavi Center to Shields Grove;
• Route 2 -- from the front of Freeborn Hall to Shields Grove;
• Route 3 -- from Bioletti Drive and the Bainer Hall Drive intersection and a stop at lot 29;
• Route 4 -- from the south side of Shields Library, with a stop also at California and North Quad avenues to Shields Grove;
• Route 5 -- W line (riders who show their UC Davis ID card or TGFS lunch ticket can hop on the W line and take it to the North Quad circle and pick up tram route 2 from there);
• Route 6 -- from Research Park, with a stop also at Drew Circle to Shields Grove; and
• Route 7 -- stops at lots 35 and 30 and DANR enroute to Shields Grove (with a primate center stop included in the return).

All trams will be in place at the first stops at 10:45 a.m. and run continuously until 2 p.m. Attendees also can take the P and Q Unitrans lines and then take the Route 2 tram to Shields Grove.

For more details about TGFS events, see http://staff.ucdavis.edu/tgfs/index_html.

Inaugural Public Safety Day set for Saturday

UC Davis police officers and firefighters will on Saturday join the Davis Police Department in presenting the first annual Public Safety Day.

The event takes place 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Davis Police facility, 2600 5th St., and along with information booths and activities will feature a lighthearted "Dunk-A-Parking Enforcement Officer" booth.

Activities also will include California Highway Patrol car-seat safety inspections, a "Kidprint" (ID booth), bike helmet inspections, a bounce house, a variety of food sales and tours of the Davis Police Department. Attendees will be treated to K-9 and SWAT demonstrations, and visits by McGruff the crime dog and the Yolo County Sheriff's Posse.

The UC Davis police and fire departments will host interactive booths. Also on hand will be Davis Fire Department members, the California Highway Patrol, Yolo County Sheriff's Department, Lifeflight, American Medical Response, Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Center and the Multi-Disciplinary Interview Center.

Security expert to speak

Robert Rodriguez, assistant special agent for the U.S. Secret Service's San Francisco District Office, will speak from 3 to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 4, in 1131 Kemper Hall. The talk, "Leading Change and Building Coalitions through a Public-Private Partnership," is the first in a series of seminars on homeland security sponsored by the UC Davis Office of Research and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

The security seminar series is intended to provide ex-panded opportunities for collaboration between UC Davis and the national lab in the area of homeland security.

For details, call (530) 754-4331.