“My agent said it would be good practice for me,” Taylor-Johnson says. “It was a room full of 15 people. It was really intimidating. I had cut together a mood reel. I had music ideas, boards of lighting. I really worked to make sure I was taken seriously. The next day they called me at 8 in the morning and said, ‘You’ve got the job, and we’re announcing it at lunchtime.’ “. Author James was a hands-on producer. She was in the room when Taylor-Johnson first made her pitch for the job, and she had approval over the script by Kelly Marcel, the casting and the wardrobe, which led to heated discussions, Taylor-Johnson says.

Avance (Salsa Spot), 8 p.m, April 4, Club Fox, 2209 Broadway, Redwood City, $15, 877-435-9849 or www.clubfoxrwc.com, House ballet shoes necklace, cute bronze charm pendant, girly dancing of Floyd, 8 p.m, April 5, Club Fox, 2209 Broadway, Redwood City, $18, 877-435-9849 or www.clubfoxrwc.com, Palo Alto Philharmonic, 8 p.m, April 5, Works by Igor Stravinsky, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Antonin Dvorák and John Corigliano, Cubberley Theatre, 4000 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto.$10-$20, www.paphil.org, Peninsula Girls Chorus, Why We Sing, 20th anniversary celebration and concert, 3 p.m, April 5, San Mateo Performing Arts Center, 600 N, Delaware St, San Mateo, $10-$25, Tickets: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/597466 Information: 650-347-6351..

Ruth E. Stein does a yeoman’s job in rounding up authentic-looking 1950s-era props, and Edward Hunter’s lighting seems right (other than leaving Melnick in the dark while she is singing part of the opening number). Ken Kilen has the monumental task of providing quality sound, but it’s a shame some of the singer’s mics don’t always work at the right time. Despite these shortcomings, clearly “Damn Yankees” resonates with many members of the enthusiastic audience — both young and old. And who doesn’t love baseball??.

“And he’s great company, He sat me down and told me stories about conducting gigantic Mahler symphonies and about working with James Brown, For me, Michael took on the role of a mentor in the proper sense, which doesn’t really exist ballet shoes necklace, cute bronze charm pendant, girly dancing in rock ‘n’ roll, You usually want to do down” — as in, get the better of — “the person who came before you.”, In the end, the hour-long, 200-page score came off snazzily, with misty atmospherics and real spirit, You can hear Costllo’s love of Debussy’s refinement and Stravinsky’s puckishness in “Il Sogno.” It has good, solid Costello-ish melodies, too..

The final weekend of the 2014 Silicon Valley Open Studios presented many opportunities to see the works of Saratoga artists. Gabriel Coke exhibited his drawings at his Cloud Castle Art Studio on Big Basin Way and Holly Van Hart opened her studio May 17-18 to show dozens of her new abstract nature paintings. The Saratoga Union School District announced its teacher honorees for the 2014 school year: Jason Robertson, a science and computer teacher at Redwood Middle School; Harry Dill, a technology resource teacher in the district; and Karen Smyrl, the special day class teacher at Foothill Elementary.