Fullerton Gets Chance to Show Off Night Life

In 1964, a group of Fullerton residents decided it was time to showcase their local artists and cultural amenities, and for one night, the public was invited free to exhibitions scattered around the city.

“A Night in Fullerton” turned out to be more than a one-night stand. It has become firmly rooted as the thing to do on the last Friday of every April, an event that draws between 10,000 and 15,000 people. Tonight will be the 37th edition.

Fullerton was a fertile field for such an event, said Joe Felz, director of the Fullerton Museum Center. “Our downtown is very historic,” Felz said. “Fullerton made a decision not to tear down this old downtown and to rebuild it . . . so that adds a pretty special backdrop.

“But we’ve also got a very diverse community. We’ve got five colleges and universities. We have private art galleries and long-established public arts institutions like the Muckenthaler Cultural Center.”

That, in turn, has attracted such artists as Anthony Trasport, who grew up in Aliquippa, a steel town outside Pittsburgh, but moved to Fullerton in 1969. He says he feels at home in a city with tree-lined streets and a preference for old-style architecture.

His works will be among those exhibited tonight, but more than paintings will be on display. Highlights of the evening will include a family-oriented puppet show at Theatre Whereabouts, a performance of “Appalachian Spring” by members and apprentices of the Nouveau Chamber Ballet Company and an evening of folk, jazz, rock and magic at the city’s Christian Life Center.

“A Night in Fullerton” is subsidized by city and private funds. Suggestions to charge admission have been rejected, despite the substantial costs of printing brochures and installing lights at the various sites. Free bus transportation among some sites is also provided.

The commitment to being nonprofit remains so strong that galleries are forbidden to sell works during the evening. “We just kind of swallow hard, because we are a retail gallery,” said Ann Thacker, who, with husband Jim, operates the Village Art Center.

“But it’s a wonderful night. People are friendly, and they love to ask the artists questions. They become familiar with our business. Hopefully, the next week, month or year they’ll come in and purchase something.”

Trasport will be exhibiting many of his paintings at the Thackers’ gallery tonight, along with artists Sue Ellen Cooper, JoAnn Cowans, George Kyle and Ann Runco.

His paintings will be “landscapes and points of interest in Fullerton,” Trasport said. “Some of them [involve] people that I have occasionally noticed in the area,” including one of Fullerton-bred Paul Abbott, a pitcher with the Seattle Mariners.

For musician John Krause, “A Night in Fullerton” is an opportunity to introduce his new band, Barnacle, on the Fullerton Downtown Plaza Stage. Krause describes Barnacle’s music as “Tex-Mex Appalachian punk.”

Barnacle’s members--Krause, Dave Dutton and Steve Parks--used to play in a prominent Fullerton group called Trip the Spring, which formed in 1989 and played Grateful Dead-type jam band style. When Trip the Spring broke up, the three musicians started Barnacle with guitarist Ian Miller.

Krause said the lack of bars and clubs in Fullerton offering original and adventurous live music makes an appearance by his band an unusual treat.

“A Night in Fullerton” has grown so much it’s impossible to attend all venues in one night, but organizers have resisted extending the event, Thacker said. That would destroy its one-special-evening premise.

“People come here for dinner and go to a couple of sites,” Thacker said. “It tends to be more of a sophisticated crowd.”

“A Night In Fullerton,” 7-11 tonight. Information: (714) 738-6575.

‘A Night in Fullerton’ Sites

The official ‘A Night in Fullerton’ sites feature free music, art, drama and dance programs continuously from 7 to 11 p.m. There is free parking at all sites and free shuttle bus service.

Graphics and reporting by PAUL DUGINSKI / Los Angeles Times