Riff: Ruthie Foster’s Joy For those of us fortunate to see Ruthie Foster in concert at the Wimberley Playhouse a week ago, it is likely her performance will be remembered for a good long time. The experience was like worshiping at the altar of Ruthie. Not that the artist flattened her audience with any display of self-absorption or ego, it was something quite the opposite. What we saw was an artist who taps into a river of joy – with all the cosmic factors that implies – and streams it to her audience.
Indeed, after finishing one of her songs, she shivered a little and said, “I might keep some of that for myself.” Through her music, Ruthie transforms her audience, elevating them from the mundane aspects of their day to something more sustaining. One reviewer called her performances “transfiguring.”
Ruthie’s performance was one of the Stars Over Wimberley presentations launched by Wimberley Valley Arts and Cultural Alliance in 2023 in partnership with the Wimberley Players theatre. The musical series helps support the Robert Moreman scholarship fund. Former Executive Director of the Wimberley Valley Chamber of Commerce, Cathy Moreman, spoke briefly before the show.
Ruthie is a native Texan who is gifted with a voice so naturally expressive and musical that it has been compared to Aretha Franklin, Bonnie Raitt and Ella Fitzgerald. But comparing Ruthie to others fails to capture the whole truth of her talent and presence. Her sensitive dynamics and deeply personal interpretation of the material she performs catapults her talent into the transformative. Her version of Pete Seeger’s, “If I had a hammer” was mesmerizing, as was her version of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire.”
Her music is a fusion of blues, gospel, folk, soul, and jazz. Her ninth studio album “Healing Time,” was released this year and you’ll find her star on the sidewalk outside the Paramount Theatre in Austin. She is the sixth artist to receive that particular distinction. Jerry Jeff Walker, Lyle Lovett, Delbert McClinton and “Greater Tuna” creators Jaston Williams and Joe Sears are the others.
Ruthie ended her performance with “I am a Phenomenal Woman,” adapted from poems written by Maya Angelou in a book of poetry by the same name. She sang it with her head held high, as an easy statement of fact, without a hint of swagger. You should have seen her.
In fact, more than a hundred people saw her that night in the Playhouse, and I suspect each of them was a little sorry to see her go.
To learn more about Ruthie Foster, explore ruthiefoster. com where you can download “Healing Time.” While you’re at it, key in homeaustin. org to learn about her involvement with “HOME,” a non-profit organization of performers who help musicians 55 and older with housing needs.
Roam: The Science Mill in Johnson City For the last 35 years, the Discovery Channel has hosted “Shark Week” each July or August to teach viewers about one of the keystone species of the ocean. The programming was a response to the 1975 Spielberg movie, “Jaws,” that horrified viewers the world over.
For decades now, visionary scientists have been teaching us that everything in nature is part of a system within other innumerable systems that is part of an equilibrium so vast it’s hard to really comprehend.
With that in mind, I went to the Science Mill in Johnson City for their version of “Shark Week.” This museum for children is the perfect place to play with kids while engaging their minds and motor skills. Housed in a former cotton gin, it is large, high ceilinged and cool, with abundant activities and experiences for everyone in the family.
I took in a 3D movie on Great White sharks narrated by one of my favorite quirky British actors, Bill Nighy, where I learned that tens of millions of sharks are killed each year for shark fin soup alone. I put on 3D glasses and settled in for the show. Around me I heard the rhythm of little voices and the shushes of parents who wanted to watch the movie as much as I did.
I learned that sharks are on the brink of extinction along with a few practical tips on how to behave when meeting one in the water – maintain eye contact, keep your cool, and always check your rearview mirror, as they like to approach from behind.
While waiting to get on their interactive exhibit, the “4D Virtual Reef Experience,” I built a race car the size of a shoe box and raced it on an electric track.
The virtual reality reef experience was worth the wait. As a diver with underwater credits throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South Africa, I am easily drawn to all the ocean time I can get, virtual or not.
With the help of a museum volunteer, I arranged myself face down on a padded “table” that resembled a piece of gym equipment. I placed my hands and forearms on two hinged panels that allowed me to swivel them up and down and from side to side. The volunteer snuggled the VR headset over my eyes and started the program. For several minutes I became a swimming turtle, using my flippers to skim over a vibrant coral reef, navigating through one that had died, and trying to make my way through curtains of plastic trash suspended in the water. While I prized my time on the interactive exhibit, the experience of swimming through a confetti of trash hit home in a way that written reports couldn’t. I dedicated myself then and there to remove disposable plastic from my shopping list.
For more information about the Science Mill go to sciencemill.org. Visit sharkangels.org to learn about shark conservation, and for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week programming, type discovery.com/ shark-week on your keyboard. Jason Momoa is this year’s host.
Rave: West Henly Boil Shack
On a return trip from Johnson City to Wimberley, I stopped for an early dinner at the Boil Shack on US Highway 290, in the Dripping Springs-adjacent neighborhood of West Henly.
The restaurant was a welcome surprise with Cajun recipes on the menu, friendly people behind the bar and a scrubbed interior reminiscent of Louisiana coastal eateries. Smallish with about a dozen tables inside, it sports an outdoor stage and seating area. The outdoor amenities were temporarily closed because of the extreme heat. The menu included boudin, gumbo, fried green tomatoes, crawfish etouffee, oysters, shrimp, redfish and catfish, along with burgers, hot dogs and sandwiches. Wine, beer and hard seltzers rounded out the drinks selection. Besides Fat Boy burgers, there isn’t much to choose from along that stretch of highway. Even though it has been open since 2019, it didn’t register on my radar until recently. It’s worth the stop.
